A new “player” on the market, Mounzaro, which is intended not only for people with diabetes but also for patients with obesity, is gaining ground in Cyprus. The injectable drug was developed following the global craze for Ozempic, which—although intended exclusively for people with diabetes—has been exploited for weight-loss purposes around the world. Mounzaro is administered following a named-patient request submitted by doctors to the OAY’s Named-Patient Drug Request Committee, as it is not currently provided by GESY.
Over the past 20 months, 1,747 requests were submitted, corresponding to 972 patients. Of the total number of requests, 1,311 were submitted during the first eight months of 2026. So far, 422 cases have been evaluated, 238 have been approved, and 184 have been rejected. The upward trend in the number of applications since April 2025 is also noteworthy. From just eleven applications, the number reached 227 by July 2026, a figure that continues to rise.
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“The ‘Mounzaro’ is not granted in cases where people simply want to lose a few pounds to look good on the beach in the summer. There are criteria, even at the committee level for individual requests, to ensure that the medication goes where it’s truly needed.”
Sofia Petridou – Senior Officer, OAU
READ ALSO: The “Battle” of the Injectables: How and When Ozempic and Mounjaro Are Administered
In the coming months, Mounjaro will be provided through the National Health System (GESY). Officials estimate that this will lead to an increase in the number of applications. There are already significant delays in the evaluation of these applications.
“There is a delay; we acknowledge that. These procedures concern medications not covered by the National Health System (GESY), so all requests are evaluated one by one by the committee, and due to the large number of requests that have been submitted, delays are occurring.”
Sophia Petridou – Senior Officer, OAU
Thousands of requests
The Health Insurance Organization has received 6,642 applications for Ozempic over the past 20 months. This injectable medication is intended exclusively for people with diabetes, who have often faced shortages due to its misuse for weight loss. With its inclusion in the National Health System (GeSY), approval is granted on a protocol basis.
“The organization is able to verify through the IT system both the diagnosis entered by the doctor and the medication the patient is receiving. Therefore, claims are approved only in cases where we verify that the patient actually has diabetes.”
Sophia Petridou – Senior Officer, OAU
Eight out of ten applications are approved, and those that are rejected are usually due to an error in the prescription.
In the near future, the OAU intends to relax the restrictions and broaden the criteria to increase the number of beneficiaries. However, the program will once again be limited to people with diabetes.
Watch the report by Nasia Ioannou:
