The Pharmaceuticals Management Agency (Pharmac), a New Zealand apex body that decides which medicines to subsidize on behalf of District Health Boards, has revealed that last year has been historic one. They have never funded so many medicines as they did last year.

Their annual report revealed the fact which also disclosed that in total 39 medicines have got funded by them. Other 43 medicines supply has also been increased.

Chief Executive Steffan Crausaz said such an increase was only possible due to two things. Firstly, due to increase in the medicines budget consecutively for the last three years, and organization’s own saving being the second.

Crausaz said, “In the past year, we have provided new or wider access to 82 medicines - the heaviest and most sustained period of medicine investment in Pharmac's 18-year history”.

Local need has become important these days. Not only for hospitals, but also for medicine suppliers and Pharmac was no alien to the concept. They also catered to local community which led them increase their budget to $706 million. In this amount, they have got success to fund more than 39.7 million prescriptions.

It is just a small contribution from their side to make medical help accessible. In their last fiscal, they funded some cancer medicines, such as sunitinib and erlotinib which could be taken back home rather than in hospital alone.

Provision of these medicines would not only help patients but also hospitals as fewer resources would be used on such treatments.

Some other treatments which have got funded for chronic orthopaedic surgery are anticoagulant and rivaroxaban. Pharmac said they fully support UNAIDS and that is the reason they have funded two treatments for HIV, darunavir and etravirine.

They have been closely working on the points which were pointed out by the Government and last year success was part of that effort.