6 October 2015 - Medicines New Zealand believes signing of the TPP has potential to boost the New Zealand economy by between $2-4 billion per year, open up new markets for our exporters, and allow New Zealanders improved access to innovative and beneficial goods including medicines and vaccines.

There appears to be no change in the cost of subsidised medicines to patients as a result of TPP, which is a good outcome for New Zealanders.

It is disappointing that better IP protection for novel biologic medicines through data exclusivity has not been agreed to, but it is positive that at least a baseline protection will now exist across the TPP countries.

“While we are yet to see the full details of the agreement, we are pleased that some aspects of timeliness and transparency in the PHARMAC process appear to have been addressed, without any change to the PHARMAC structure” said Hon Heather Roy, Chair of Medicines New Zealand.

For more details, go to: http://www.medicinesnz.co.nz/media-releases/