New Zealand funds their medicine through PHARMAC, a crown entity that determines and negotiates which essential medicine will be funded with their limited budget. The budget, given by the NZ government, was 71 million for 2022 and 120 million for 2023. PHARMAC has a committee called the Pharmacology and Therapeutics Advisory Committee (PTAC) that will choose which medicine to fund based on the demand, cost-effectiveness of the medicine and other factors. The PTAC will also take into account the quality and length of lives would be with or without the medicine. Currently, they fund over 1,300 different chemicals in 3,300 different presentations. People can put in applications to request a medicine to be funded in NZ – medicine would ideally present a clear benefit for New Zealanders with a deal with the medicine supplier to be approved by PTAC.
Financial barriers to primary health care in Aotearoa New Zealand
Financial barriers to primary health care in Aotearoa New Zealand
Inequities in health between Māori, the indigenous people of Aotearoa New Zealand, and non-Māori have been evident throughout the colonial history of the country. Read more