40051 (2024). Hon Dr Duncan Webb to the Associate Minister of Health

40051 (2024). Hon Dr Duncan Webb to the Associate Minister of Health: Is Cetuximab being considered by Pharmac for funding and if so when might it be be available to the public on a subsidised basis?

Hon David Seymour: As the Member will be aware, Pharmac is the government agency that determines which pharmaceuticals are funded from this budget. Pharmac operates independently of the Minister of Health, Associate Ministers of Health and the Ministry of Health when making funding decisions. This independence allows the public to have confidence in the impartiality of funding decisions. Therefore, it is not appropriate for me to comment on the funding of individual medicines. I am advised by Pharmac that it has received applications to publicly fund cetuximab. Details on the status of these applications is available on the Pharmac website: https://connect.pharmac.govt.nz/apptracker/s/global-search/Cetuximab