On the campaign trail, National promised to fund the drugs that had been highlighted in a Cancer Control Agency Report about the medicine gap in Aotearoa. File photo. Photo: 123rf
Reports that Pharmac is set to get a major funding boost have reignited hope - but also uncertainty - among thousands of patients waiting for life-saving medicines.
RNZ understands Cabinet will decide on Monday whether to put more money into the drug-buying agency.
This follows a backlash over the government's failure to honour National's pre-election promise to fund 13 specific cancer drugs in the Budget.
Patient Voice Aotearoa spokesman Malcolm Mulholland said it made sense to give Pharmac an overall funding boost rather than tying the cash to specific drugs.
It was not just cancer patients who would benefit, he said.
"So what happens now is that Pharmac will work its way down the list of options for investment until it's covered those 13.
"That means it's not just those drugs that will be funded, but other cancer drugs, as well as medicines that will treat those with chronic illnesses or rare disorders.
"So this a a real game-changer."
Patient Voice Aotearoa spokesman Malcolm Mulholland. Photo: Matthew Rosenberg/LDR
The off-the-shelf price of the 90 or so medicines on Pharmac's current "priorities for investment list" was estimated at about $400m, Mulholland said.
However, Pharmac typically started negotiations with a half-price discount and "bargained down from there".
"The top price tag for clearing the waiting list of drugs would be around (the) $200m mark, that's why we're reasonably confident that $150m (a year) will put a significant dent in Pharmac's waiting list."
Investing in medicines would also save taxpayers money by extending some people's lives and allowing others to live full lives, he said.
"Patients are celebrating and hoping like mad that their drug is funded as a result of the funding uplift. It's just good news all round."
However, Cancer Society chief executive Dr Rachael Hart said the government needed to be clear with cancer patients about whether this cash injection would deliver on its promise to them.
"The challenge is that the government made a particular promise about prioritising investment in oncology medicines with significant clinical benefit.
"So while it does make sense as a model, what we're yet to see from the government and what we'll be looking to see when the announcement comes out, is how is it going to close the gap on cancer drugs?"
The rumoured figure of $600m over four years would not be enough to fund every medicine on Pharmac's wish list, Hart said.
The other big unknown was when the funding could be delivered.
"One of the things we wouldn't want to see is for that money to be taken from other parts of the health system, which are already struggling."