'It’s absurd' - allergy sufferers beg PHARMAC to fund EpiPens

Newshub

13 May 2019 - An ice cream factory in the family sounds like every child’s dream. But for Dylan Wright, just setting foot in the door put his life in danger. 

At 10 months old, as his mother Rebecca Oliver held him in her arms, he started gasping for breath. "I couldn’t figure out what was going on," she says. "And then his eyes started rolling back in his head and he went all floppy."

Thousands of New Zealanders rely on the auto-injector, but only if they can fund it themselves. The EpiPen, which costs up to $180, has been languishing on the medicines waiting list for PHARMAC funding for 14 years. Dylan - who is now nine - needs two at home, and two at school. They can only be used once, and expire after 12-18 months.

The alternative is a $1 glass vial of adrenaline, which is funded by PHARMAC, but must be administered with a needle and syringe. Allergy specialist Dr Maia Brewerton says that method is unacceptable. "For those who are at risk an EpiPen is essential. I don’t prescribe adrenaline ampoules and needles because they are not equivalent in terms of safety for patients," she says.

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Michael Wonder

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Michael Wonder

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Medicine , New Zealand , Funding