Today marks one year since the Pharmac Review was
delivered to then Health Minister Andrew Little. Its
recommendations were so damning that Minister Little
declared, “The days of the independent republic of Pharmac
are over.”
Pharmac still hasn’t released its final
response to the Review’s 33 recommendations. Patient Voice
Aotearoa called for the review and believes Pharmac’s
painfully slow response is yet another sign that the agency
is uncommitted to change.
“Patients have been asking
“what’s changed?” since the Pharmac Review was
released,” says Patient Voice Aotearoa Chair Dr Malcolm
Mulholland.
Despite funding several high-profile
medicines during the last year – including the EpiPen
which awaited funding for 25 years – 125 applications sit
on Pharmac’s Options for Investment list. These are
medicines that would improve, prolong and save Kiwi’s
lives.
“The proof is in the pudding. One year on and
dozens of medicines still sit on Pharmac’s waiting list
while Kiwis continue to become medical refugees, launch
Givealittle campaigns and in some cases die while waiting
for medicines to be funded.
“There has been no
substantive change to how Pharmac assess medicines that New
Zealanders so desperately need. Yet again Pharmac is killing
time while Kiwis wait for medicines that are funded in
countless other countries” says Dr Mulholland.
“It
appears there is still no urgency to fix New Zealand’s
medicines crisis and no urgency for Pharmac to respond fully
to the Review” adds Dr Mulholland.
Patient Voice
Aotearoa is also extremely concerned about Pharmac’s
failure to transform its culture and leadership since the
Pharmac Review highlighted concerns with
both.
“Pharmac’s culture, which was heavily
criticised by the Review has, yet again, been in the
spotlight for all the wrong reasons surrounding their
botched announcement to fund Trikafta and their media ban on
Today FM and Mediaworks” says Dr Mulholland.
A
recent proactive document release by Pharmac regarding the
media ban also revealed that Pharmac threatened to “go
after them” in reference to Fiona Ellis from the Otago
Daily Times who scooped Pharmac’s Trikafta
story.
“We find these recent developments deeply
troubling and a sign that Pharmac’s ‘fortress’
mentality has not changed” says Dr
Mulholland.
“Trikafta’s funding was an incredible
development but the way the announcement was managed showed
a total lack of leadership and a sense that Pharmac’s
focus remains on public perception and their own image as
opposed to patient wellbeing.”
“The Review
recommended that Pharmac improve the ‘transparency and
accessibility of its systems, processes, resources, and
communications’” says Dr Mulholland, “yet the agency
continues to behave antagonistically towards media and
advocacy groups. This raises serious questions about
Pharmac’s commitment to change.”
“One year on
critical questions need to be asked of the Minister of
Health, the Ministry of Health and Pharmac about the glacial
pace of change at Pharmac, and Pharmac’s final response to
the Review must be released immediately” says Dr
Mulholland. “Kiwi patients don’t have time to
wait.”
Patient Voice Aotearoa is again calling on
Government to provide Pharmac with the budget it needs to
clear its ‘Options for Investment’ medicines list
immediately –particularly due to the delay in Pharmac
responding to – let alone actioning – the
recommendations of the Pharmac
Review.
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