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Pharmacists and other community healthcare professionals could play a central role in providing “wrap-around” obesity care in neighbourhood hubs, helping to ease pressure on GPs, MPs have been told.
Speaking on 25 February 2026 at a House of Commons Health and Social Care Committee evidence session on food and weight management, Kath McCullough, special adviser on obesity at the Royal College of Physicians, told the committee that a “robust workforce plan” was needed to make this possible.
“There’s already some really good models of care available,” she said, highlighting existing women’s health hubs, smoking cessation programmes and cardiovascular clinics “all being done within the community already.”
“You’ve got some phenomenal pharmacists out there,” McCullough added.
“Utilising hubs within neighbourhood communities… it’s really important that whatever way this is done, it’s done in a holistic way, that it’s patient-centred and done within an [multidisciplinary team].”
On 23 February 2026, the Department of Health and Social Care announced that GPs will be financially incentivised under the 2026/2027 GP contract to provide weight-loss medicines on the NHS, including Mounjaro (tirzepatide; Eli Lilly) and Wegovy (semaglutide; Novo Nordisk), with £25m allocated to support access.
The announcement raised concerns that GP involvement could dominate the rollout, with less formal engagement for pharmacists in supporting patient access.
Munro Stewart, vice-chair of policy at the Royal College of General Practitioners, said in the evidence session that GPs now see 16% more patients per GP than in 2015, describing primary care services as “beyond capacity,” particularly given the increased workload from weight-loss medications.
McCullough suggested the implementation of planning services at integrated care board level to ensure care is joined up across the system.
