New Zealand Pharmac expands funded access to type 2 diabetes medicines

From 1 September, New Zealand’s medicines agency Pharmac will broaden eligibility for four funded type 2 diabetes medicines – empagliflozin, empagliflozin with metformin, liraglutide and dulaglutide. The new criteria remove ethnicity‑based and disease‑history requirements, limiting eligibility to patients whose blood‑sugar levels remain above target despite other funded treatments.

The change is expected to benefit more than 30,000 patients over the next five years, with around 14,000 gaining access in the first year. It follows extensive public consultation that received about 1,900 submissions. Associate Health Minister David Seymour and Pharmac’s Chief Medical Officer Dr David Hughes said the expansion will improve blood‑sugar control, lower the risk of heart and kidney complications, and reduce pressure on the health system.