PHARMAC boasts of success
December 6, 2013
New Zealand’s Pharmaceutical
Management Agency (PHARMAC)
claims its approach to funding
pharmaceuticals is “as relevant
now as it has ever been,” saying in
its annual review yesterday that
it’s enabled record numbers of
New Zealanders to receive funded
medicines over the last year.
The review showed that the
number of funded prescription
items has also continued to grow,
to a record 42.2 million.
Drawing a comparison with
Australia, ceo Steffan Crausaz
pointed out that atorvastatin
40 mg, which costs Australian
taxpayers $51.00 for 30 tabs
through the PBS, costs just AU$5.80
for 90 tabs in New Zealand.
This product alone “would save
the PBS more than $1.4 million a
day,” he said.
Crausaz said that PHARMAC’s
methods will be even more
important as it beds in new roles.
“In the past year, PHARMAC
has successfully absorbed the
national immunisation schedule
within the funding it manages, and
also manages all funded hospital
medicines.
“Now that PHARMAC is taking on
a wider role the relevance of the
PHARMAC approach comes even
more sharply into focus,” he wrote.
“An even larger piece of work is
now underway, involving hospital
medical devices. While medicines
number in the thousands, devices
number in the tens of thousands.”
An analysis of NZ prescribing data
showed that 85% of pharmaceutical
spending went to 16% of patients
- or conversely a large number of
people (2.7 million) are covered
with just 15% of the budget.
“In other words PHARMAC gets
enormous bang for the buck for the
majority of New Zealanders in need
of medicines”.
CLICK HERE to read the review.
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