FACE-TO-FACE appointments should be mandatory ahead of approving fat jab prescriptions, leading pharmacists say.
The Independent Pharmacies Association called for tighter restrictions after The Sun revealed that 82 Brits have died using weight-loss and diabetes drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro.
Online sellers were told last month to stop accepting photo and text applications for the drugs amid concerns slimmers are pretending to be fatter than they really are.
But there are concerns people are using friends as stand-ins or tweaking the scales — so regulators have been urged to step in and fight misuse.
IPA boss Dr Leyla Hannbeck said: “We feel that this medication is liable to misuse and should be subject to a face-to-face consultation to ensure the patient understands the risks and the prescriber can check they meet the criteria to use the medication.
“The sharp rise in the popularity and ease of online access to such high-risk medicines is undoubtedly putting patients at risk – more must be done to put patient safety first.
“We are aware of patients misrepresenting their weight and some are even using proxies to conduct online consultations.
“It is also a lot easier for people to change the settings on their scales at home so they say they are heavier than they are, just to get their hands on these new drugs.
“We need the General Pharmaceutical Council and MHRA to tighten the policing around these medicines.”
The number of people in the UK buying the injections privately for weight loss is projected to hit one million this year.
Ten of the deaths were in patients taking them for weight loss, though they have historically been used to treat type 2 diabetes.
Ade Robinson, 60, of Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, died in November after taking Mounjaro he bought online.
His family said the public should be made more aware of the risks.
Nick Kaye, chair of the National Pharmacy Association, said: “This is a new area of treatment with unprecedented levels of demand from the public so it is important that regulations are regularly reviewed and updated to protect patient safety.”
Katharine Jenner, director of the Obesity Health Alliance, added: “It’s important that people who have a medical need for weight-loss drugs can access them safely.
“However, there are serious concerns about side effects, highlighting the need for stricter controls on who can get them and how they are prescribed.”
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