A good step with Medsafe and Pharmacy

David Seymour announced:

Pharmac is changing its process so it can assess a funding application at the same time Medsafe is assessing the application for regulatory approval. This means that medicines will be able to be considered for funding sooner in New Zealand.

“Access to medicines is a crucial part of many Kiwis’ lives. We’re speeding up the process so more people have access to the medicines they need, faster,” says Associate Health Minister David Seymour.

“Currently Pharmac waits until Medsafe has completed its assessment before it starts a funding assessment. Doing both at the same time will mean medicines are assessed sooner.  

“It’s a common-sense efficiency that costs nothing but helps Kiwis in need. It can shave up to nine months off the approval process. 

This seems very common sense, and you wonder why it took a new Government to do this.

But there are further changes that can be made. Having Medsafe duplicate the work of much much larger overseas regulators does not add value to NZ. We should have a policy that any drug deemed safe by two reputable overseas regulators is automatically authorised in NZ, unless there is an appeal. So Medsafe would only deal with rare appeals, rather than having to duplicate work on every drug and medicine.