NZ’s new medicines fast-track promises quicker approvals. But what about access?
A new system to approve medicines faster has been introduced. But barriers facing RSV protections shows why that’s only one step towards getting them to patients.
New Zealand's government has introduced a faster regulatory approval process for medicines, aiming to reduce the time taken to bring life-saving treatments to patients. However, this new pathway does not guarantee access to these medicines, as pricing, supply and funding arrangements must still be negotiated and secured. The situation is especially critical for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), a virus that has been causing a surge in severe respiratory illness among babies and young children in New Zealand.
While nirsevimab, an approved preventive medicine, has been approved, it remains unfunded by New Zealand's public health system. The government's verification pathway allows medicines from other countries with similar approvals to be assessed more quickly, but it does not ensure that these medicines will be made available to patients.
The Ministry of Health has started discussions with pharmaceutical companies about potential applications, but there is currently no publicly available information on how many applications have been accepted or how long the process takes.
Written by urgent.news from The Conversation AU's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
