Acomplia makes weight loss easy

Initially, the European Medicines Agency (EMEA) approved acomplia as a treatment for excessive weight on private prescription only. This forced patients to pay the full retail price for the medication. However this March in the UK, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) gave its stamp of approval to acomplia. NICE is a non-governmental organisation (NGO) that regulates the use of public funds. If NICE approves, the use of a medication in the National Health Service (NHS) is subsidised. Now patients who have a BMI of 30 or more, or a BMI of 27 with associated risk factors, need only pay the standard charge for a prescription. The cost implication in changing diet and introducing physical exercise are unchanged. This is good news for Sanofi-Aventis, the third largest pharmaceutical manufacturer in the world, which should see its sales increase.

It also represents very encouraging statement of public policy by an NGO advising the British government because the fight against obesity becomes a top medical priority. Although the treatment will only be subsidised for those who are already in the high BMI range, this is a clear approval of preventative medicine. The UK believes it is facing an “obesity crisis”. The use of acomplia is preventative in that, as body weight increases, so do the risks of high blood pressure, diabetes and heart disease. In a public health system, these are expensive conditions to treat. It is therefore better value to use acomplia in conjunction with diet and exercise to reduce body weight before the other conditions appear. Tax payers and those with reducing weight will all benefit.