NHS diabetes medication prescribing costs rose 135% in a decade: NHSBSA

Key Summary The cost of medication prescribed to treat diabetes was £985m in 2016/17, and this has soared to £2.3bn in 2025/26. Diabetes medicines were prescribed to 4.1 million patients in England, out of which 55% were male and 45% female, and most of them hail from deprived areas. Diabetes treatments accounted for 20% of total spend on all prescribed items in England in 2025/26, up from 11% in…