1 July 2019 - Today marks the beginning of a new financial year for PHARMAC and the publication of a new Pharmaceutical Schedule.

According to a recent article in the New Zealand Herald, PHARMAC was allocated an additional NZ$10 million a year over four years in this year's Budget. This is a nominal increase.

This means there is no substantive new money in this year's budget for PHARMAC so one should not expect to see many new listings for the next 12 months. There are no major new listings this month; the highlight is a widening of the current restrictions for whooping cough vaccine. Th situation will continue to worsen insofar as the number of medicines on the waiting list will continue to grow in number and scope.