I'm in the US. How can I get semiglutide mail order from the UK?
May 12, 2023 2:18 PM Subscribe
Semiglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy, etc.) are the new, popular weight loss drugs. Insurance covers them only if prescribed for diabetes. For weight loss, they're generally not covered -- definitely not covered by Medicare. Without insurance coverage, they are very expensive in the US. They are much cheaper in the UK. Is there any way to get a prescription that could be filled mail order in the UK? One would want to be sure they are actually getting the real drug, of course.
One thing to be aware of is some pharmacies in the UK require ID and your GP’s details before they’ll give you semaglutide (to verify you’re overweight) which might not be possible if you’re US-based.
There are other ways to get synthetic peptides in the US… but going down the “not for human consumption” route might not be to your taste!
posted by osmond_nash at 3:59 PM on May 12, 2023 [1 favorite]
There are other ways to get synthetic peptides in the US… but going down the “not for human consumption” route might not be to your taste!
posted by osmond_nash at 3:59 PM on May 12, 2023 [1 favorite]
Medications in the UK are heavily subsidized by the government, that's why they are cheaper. The only real way to do this is find people in the UK with prescriptions for what you want and then go over there and pay them money for those drugs. You know, just like how you get recreational opiates here.
Or, you can do what a UK friend of mine does because it's effectively not possible to get Paxlovid prescribed over there: bribe people with first class plane tickets to bring you easily obtained drugs from their country to yours, where are they are not so easily obtained.
posted by Back At It Again At Krispy Kreme at 4:25 PM on May 12, 2023 [3 favorites]
Or, you can do what a UK friend of mine does because it's effectively not possible to get Paxlovid prescribed over there: bribe people with first class plane tickets to bring you easily obtained drugs from their country to yours, where are they are not so easily obtained.
posted by Back At It Again At Krispy Kreme at 4:25 PM on May 12, 2023 [3 favorites]
Given the fact that this off-label usage is causing a shortage and creating problems for people with Type 2 Diabetes and who can end up with little things like strokes, kidney disease, liver disease, etc. you might find that it will be hard to get someone in the UK to write you a prescription for this.
posted by brookeb at 5:06 PM on May 12, 2023 [15 favorites]
posted by brookeb at 5:06 PM on May 12, 2023 [15 favorites]
Best answer: Hey, DMelanogaster, reddit is a good resource for tracking down prescribing doctors and discounts for semaglutide, Ozempic, Mounjaro, Wegovy, etc. Some people in the US prefer telehealth services, and domestic compounding pharmacies, over importing from the UK (or Mexico, or...). Keyword search across the subreddits, and good luck.
posted by Iris Gambol at 7:11 PM on May 12, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by Iris Gambol at 7:11 PM on May 12, 2023 [2 favorites]
Best answer: Sorry, missed a link to a reddit thread about semaglutide-compounded-with-B12 (medspas, HenryMeds, and so on).
posted by Iris Gambol at 7:25 PM on May 12, 2023
posted by Iris Gambol at 7:25 PM on May 12, 2023
Mod note: A couple deleted. Please answer only if you have info pertinent to the question.
posted by taz (staff) at 10:55 PM on May 12, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by taz (staff) at 10:55 PM on May 12, 2023 [2 favorites]
Best answer: > Wegovy by design and Ozempic as an off-label/side effect
Just a point of information: Ozempic and Wegovy both have the same identical active ingredient. They are different packaging, and slightly different optimized dosages for each of those different uses, but that actual active ingredient (semaglutide) is literally identical, and the different dosages are not even that very different. The main difference is that Wegovy goes up to higher dosages, which can be helpful if weight loss is the reason for taking semaglutide.
Both the effect on Type 2 diabetes and the effect on weight of semaglutide are not in any way unintended side effects, but rather, precisely what this drug was designed to do. I mean, it was developed first with Type 2 diabetes patients in mind, because that is an obvious target for what it does. And some of the marketing material sort of blathers on about how researchers accidentally noticed an effect on patients' weight as they were treated for Type 2 diabetes. But the folks who developed this class of drugs were specifically looking for this type of target and they had a pretty good idea the effects were going to be far more wide ranging. Yes, they were focusing on T2 diabetes control primarily at first, but it was not really some miraculous bolt from the blue when this same strategy affected obesity as well. This is literally the system they were targeting to affect.
This recent research review gives a good idea of potential benefits and treatment for this drug, which range from reducing neuroinflammation to regulating metabolism, regulating blood lipids, promoting nerve growth, improving heart function, and more. It has been used very effectively with kidney patients (I've literally never heard nephrologists speak in such glowing terms) and shows promise in treating fatty liver disease as well.
The previous poster who touched on these issues is correct that this relatively new category of drugs is not appropriate for people who need to lose 5 pounds for an upcoming big event or whatever. But they are literally lifesavers for people who have serious health issues related to obesity, and haven't been able to shed the weight any other way. Because health issues fuck up your body, including in ways that causes weight gain, and the class of drugs that includes semaglutide are the first to actually address the underlying metabolic problems that lead to this downward spiral.
OP seems to understand this fine, but boy howdy some others sure don't.
For anyone who needs solid information, this article is a pretty good rundown on semaglutide.
Now to answer OP's question, I will just say that right now there are three main avenues to obtain semaglutide in the U.S.: #1. Regular medical doctor and regular medical insurance, perhaps with some kind of manufacturer's coupon. #2. Compounding pharmacies, as others have outlined above. #3. Peptide manufacturers.
People were getting prescriptions through Canadian pharmacies until recently, but I believe Canadian regulators have put a stop to that.
There are clinics that specialize in prescribing semaglutide and similar drugs, and they seem to be pretty savvy as to how you can actually get it - whether that be through a Canadian pharmacy, compounding pharmacy, or whatever. Push Health is often mentioned in this regard - here is a Reddit thread where that & other options are discussed.
I haven't heard of anyone obtaining semaglutide from the U.K. to the U.S. Not saying it has never happened, or that I am hearing about everything, but people are trying literally everything and I have heard not one report of success there.
Peptides are more the wild, wild west option. The basis is that a drug like semaglutide is a peptide and those are not so hard to manufacture any more. However the preparations that the peptide marketers sell are labelled for research use only/not for human use. Regardless of this, many people use them - obviously at their own risk.
If you want to look into this, the place to start is probably r/peptides on reddit. You can also search reddit and elsewhere for peptides, semaglutide, etc etc and find many results.
posted by flug at 2:12 AM on May 13, 2023 [24 favorites]
Just a point of information: Ozempic and Wegovy both have the same identical active ingredient. They are different packaging, and slightly different optimized dosages for each of those different uses, but that actual active ingredient (semaglutide) is literally identical, and the different dosages are not even that very different. The main difference is that Wegovy goes up to higher dosages, which can be helpful if weight loss is the reason for taking semaglutide.
Both the effect on Type 2 diabetes and the effect on weight of semaglutide are not in any way unintended side effects, but rather, precisely what this drug was designed to do. I mean, it was developed first with Type 2 diabetes patients in mind, because that is an obvious target for what it does. And some of the marketing material sort of blathers on about how researchers accidentally noticed an effect on patients' weight as they were treated for Type 2 diabetes. But the folks who developed this class of drugs were specifically looking for this type of target and they had a pretty good idea the effects were going to be far more wide ranging. Yes, they were focusing on T2 diabetes control primarily at first, but it was not really some miraculous bolt from the blue when this same strategy affected obesity as well. This is literally the system they were targeting to affect.
This recent research review gives a good idea of potential benefits and treatment for this drug, which range from reducing neuroinflammation to regulating metabolism, regulating blood lipids, promoting nerve growth, improving heart function, and more. It has been used very effectively with kidney patients (I've literally never heard nephrologists speak in such glowing terms) and shows promise in treating fatty liver disease as well.
The previous poster who touched on these issues is correct that this relatively new category of drugs is not appropriate for people who need to lose 5 pounds for an upcoming big event or whatever. But they are literally lifesavers for people who have serious health issues related to obesity, and haven't been able to shed the weight any other way. Because health issues fuck up your body, including in ways that causes weight gain, and the class of drugs that includes semaglutide are the first to actually address the underlying metabolic problems that lead to this downward spiral.
OP seems to understand this fine, but boy howdy some others sure don't.
For anyone who needs solid information, this article is a pretty good rundown on semaglutide.
Now to answer OP's question, I will just say that right now there are three main avenues to obtain semaglutide in the U.S.: #1. Regular medical doctor and regular medical insurance, perhaps with some kind of manufacturer's coupon. #2. Compounding pharmacies, as others have outlined above. #3. Peptide manufacturers.
People were getting prescriptions through Canadian pharmacies until recently, but I believe Canadian regulators have put a stop to that.
There are clinics that specialize in prescribing semaglutide and similar drugs, and they seem to be pretty savvy as to how you can actually get it - whether that be through a Canadian pharmacy, compounding pharmacy, or whatever. Push Health is often mentioned in this regard - here is a Reddit thread where that & other options are discussed.
I haven't heard of anyone obtaining semaglutide from the U.K. to the U.S. Not saying it has never happened, or that I am hearing about everything, but people are trying literally everything and I have heard not one report of success there.
Peptides are more the wild, wild west option. The basis is that a drug like semaglutide is a peptide and those are not so hard to manufacture any more. However the preparations that the peptide marketers sell are labelled for research use only/not for human use. Regardless of this, many people use them - obviously at their own risk.
If you want to look into this, the place to start is probably r/peptides on reddit. You can also search reddit and elsewhere for peptides, semaglutide, etc etc and find many results.
posted by flug at 2:12 AM on May 13, 2023 [24 favorites]
A UK pharmacy will only sell prescription medication to someone with a UK prescription. There are pharmacies that are hooked up with remote/online UK GP services who will prescribe drugs based on completion of an online questionnaire. These are private, not NHS, prescriptions and generally offer a fairly limited range of drugs (contraception, viagra, asthma inhalers, etc). I don't know whether they will ship the drugs overseas as you are supposed to have an export licence for prescription medication.
A quick search found me UK services that would prescribe Ozempic online, and UK services for more common prescription drugs that appear to offer international shipping, but I didn't find one that did both. (I didn't look very hard though). The place with Ozempic indicated that it needed to be shipped chilled, and I'm not sure how well that would work for transatlantic shipping.
posted by plonkee at 6:15 AM on May 13, 2023 [1 favorite]
A quick search found me UK services that would prescribe Ozempic online, and UK services for more common prescription drugs that appear to offer international shipping, but I didn't find one that did both. (I didn't look very hard though). The place with Ozempic indicated that it needed to be shipped chilled, and I'm not sure how well that would work for transatlantic shipping.
posted by plonkee at 6:15 AM on May 13, 2023 [1 favorite]
The Canadian restriction for Ozempic may be specific to British Columbia; Health Minister Adrian Dix, March 2023 and April 2023. Here's a non-B.C. pharmacy site still shipping prescriptions to the US. Part of the diabetes-med shortage concerns pen/pen needle and cartridge supplies; Novo Nordisk's oral semaglutide, Rybelsus, is available domestically and ships from Canada. (Closed-loop diabetes management lessens user burden.)
If you work with a compounding pharmacy for an injectable semaglutide, delivery method is via syringe.
Look for the most-recent posts when reading reddit discussion threads about these medications, because regulations are in flux.
posted by Iris Gambol at 10:48 AM on May 13, 2023
If you work with a compounding pharmacy for an injectable semaglutide, delivery method is via syringe.
Look for the most-recent posts when reading reddit discussion threads about these medications, because regulations are in flux.
posted by Iris Gambol at 10:48 AM on May 13, 2023
Response by poster: Thanks to everyone who answered my actual question. Not that I'm defensive or anything (nope), but I have hypertension, high cholesterol, and several other issues related to my weight. I am also borderline diabetes Type II. I have been on low calorie and every other diet in the world all my life, and thought it would be a good idea to consider semiglutide, but Medicare doesn't cover it, so I am exploring other options. Again, thank you to those who provided information relevant to my query.
posted by DMelanogaster at 5:08 PM on May 13, 2023 [6 favorites]
posted by DMelanogaster at 5:08 PM on May 13, 2023 [6 favorites]
Just to reiterate, as someone who had been waiting five months for it to come back in stock, that even if you find a pharmacy that might send it from abroad, they might not *have* it. And to also reiterate, a major part of how it works seems to be by making you really nauseous. I've thrown up more since i started taking it than in the past ten years, been awake with nausea and woken from acid reflux so much i gotta sleep sitting. There may be easier ways to feel rubbish.
posted by Iteki at 11:39 AM on May 15, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by Iteki at 11:39 AM on May 15, 2023 [2 favorites]
Response by poster: Iteki, sorry you have been feeling so poorly. I am now 5 days into Mounjaro 2.5mg. I got a prescription from my gastroenterologist and filled it at a regular pharmacy -- I have NO idea why, but my insurance actually covered it ($47 for a month's supply). Who knows if they'll cover the next month's injections, though. I felt strange the first couple of days, second day I had heartburn/reflux, but it went away the next day. I have had ZERO nausea or other side effects, EXCEPT extreme appetite suppression (hooray).
One thing I'm learning is that the responses to these drugs are HIGHLY variable. I hope that, in time, your severe side effects will subside.
posted by DMelanogaster at 5:42 PM on May 21, 2023 [2 favorites]
One thing I'm learning is that the responses to these drugs are HIGHLY variable. I hope that, in time, your severe side effects will subside.
posted by DMelanogaster at 5:42 PM on May 21, 2023 [2 favorites]
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Mods, feel free to delete this comment with my apologies if it falls too far afoul of the guidelines, but: those are NOT specifically weight loss drugs. Ozempic is a Type 2 Diabetes management drug, and Wegovy is weight management, but only for adults with at least one additional weight-related condition (high blood pressure, etc). Both drugs have the effect of causing significant weight loss, Wegovy by design and Ozempic as an off-label/side effect. Other side effects of those drugs include nausea, diarrhea, and vomiting, sometimes copiously.
Plus, you have to keep taking the drugs - like, forever - for the weight lost originally to stay off; go off the drug and your body will readjust to its pre-semiglutide metabolism.
If you are wanting to acquire those drugs simply for weight loss, you may be better off talking to your doctor about alternative strategies, because these drugs sound like they can be a rough ride if all you are looking to do is lose weight.
posted by pdb at 3:54 PM on May 12, 2023 [31 favorites]