The UK has become the first European country to make Eli Lilly’s Foundayo available. The oral medicine is used for weight management and type 2 diabetes.
Foundayo is the brand name for orforglipron. It belongs to the GLP-1 class of medicines and is taken as a daily tablet.
The medicine is currently available through private prescriptions in the UK. Patients cannot yet access it through the National Health Service.
Britain’s medicines regulator approved Foundayo on August 10, 2026. The approval covers weight management and type 2 diabetes treatment.
The launch gives patients an oral alternative to injectable weight-management medicines. It follows the recent introduction of Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy tablet.
Foundayo is currently being assessed for possible NHS availability. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence is handling the review.
NICE assesses whether medicines provide sufficient value for money for the health service. Its decision will determine whether Foundayo can become available through the NHS.
Lilly is working with NICE during the assessment process. The agency has requested additional information following its first committee meeting.
NICE has not yet announced a date for its next review. The assessment process must be completed before NHS access can be considered.
Until then, eligible patients can obtain Foundayo through private healthcare providers. This means patients will have to pay for treatment themselves.
Lilly expects the medicine to cost between £100 and £120. This would make it cheaper than the company’s Mounjaro injection.
A monthly supply of Mounjaro currently costs around £330. Private providers also charge different prices for other weight-management medicines.
The launch makes the UK an important market for oral GLP-1 treatments. Patients now have another tablet-based option for weight management.
The treatment is also intended for adults with type 2 diabetes whose condition requires additional control. Its approval therefore covers both weight management and diabetes care.
The availability of Foundayo adds another option to the growing GLP-1 medicine market. Several pharmaceutical companies are developing oral treatments for obesity and diabetes.
Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy tablet has already entered the British market. It became the first GLP-1 tablet launched in the UK before Foundayo.
However, the two treatments differ in their development and regulatory status. Foundayo is currently available privately while NHS coverage remains under review.
The medicine is also being assessed in the European Union. Meanwhile, Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy tablet has received a positive recommendation from the European Medicines Agency.
A final European Commission decision on Wegovy remains pending. Foundayo’s wider European availability will depend on regulatory decisions.
For now, the UK remains the first European market where Foundayo is available. Its NHS future will depend on the outcome of the NICE assessment.
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The launch marks another development in the growing market for oral weight-management treatments. It also provides patients with an alternative to injectable medicines.
