2019/20 invitation to tender (medical)

Email: tender@pharmac.govt.nz

Letter:
Tender Analysts
PHARMAC
PO Box 10 254
Wellington 6143

DDI:    
Emma Clarke:  (04) 830 1987
Nerissa Ramlall:  (04) 830 3824

Feedback we receive is subject to the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA) and we will consider any request to have information withheld in accordance with our obligations under the OIA. Anyone providing feedback, whether on their own account or on behalf of an organisation, and whether in a personal or professional capacity, should be aware that the content of their feedback and their identity may need to be disclosed in response to an OIA request.

We are not able to treat any part of your feedback as confidential unless you specifically request that we do, and then only to the extent permissible under the OIA and other relevant laws and requirements. If you would like us to withhold any commercially sensitive, confidential proprietary, or personal information included in your submission, please clearly state this in your submission and identify the relevant sections of your submission that you would like it withheld. PHARMAC will give due consideration to any such request.

Details of the proposed 2019/20 Tender

In accordance with PHARMAC’s objective (to secure for eligible people in need of pharmaceuticals, the best health outcomes that are reasonably achievable from pharmaceutical treatment and from within the amount of funding provided), PHARMAC is consulting on a proposal to tender certain pharmaceuticals for Sole Subsidised Supply to community pharmacies and/or Hospital Supply Status for supply to DHB hospital pharmacies.

Attached to this letter (as Schedule Two) is a list of pharmaceuticals that we are considering tendering for Sole Subsidised Supply and/or Hospital Supply Status. Pharmaceuticals are sorted into therapeutic groups and then listed alphabetically in each group by chemical, form and strength. Each pharmaceutical has a ‘C’ and/or ‘H’ next to it to indicate whether it is proposed to be tendered for community and/or hospital supply.

In general, the proposed 2019/20 Tender process would be similar to the 2018/19 Tender. 

We are seeking feedback on the approach outlined in the following pages, in particular on:

• The proposed tender process and timeline;
• The actual or potential clinical implications of awarding Sole Subsidised Supply and/or Hospital Supply Status to the pharmaceuticals listed in Schedule Two, including the impact of a brand switch on patients and clinical staff; and
• For hospital pharmaceuticals, your views on the appropriate Discretionary Variance (DV) Limit for each pharmaceutical, in the event you consider a 1% DV Limit to be clinically unacceptable.

Background

Since 1997 PHARMAC has been using the strategy of tendering pharmaceuticals for sole supply of pharmaceuticals for a fixed period of time. Regular tendering has proven to be an effective way to encourage competition among suppliers of pharmaceuticals. As in the past, the community and hospital tender processes would be run in unison, however, the pharmaceutical list for community and hospital supply may be different.

Key Aspects of Awarding a Tender for Community Pharmaceuticals:

• For community pharmaceuticals, the tender winning brand would be the only subsidised brand for up to approximately 3 years. The Sole Subsidised Supply period would conclude on 30 June 2023 for all Tenders awarded from the 2019/20 Tender.
• No other brand of the pharmaceutical would be listed (or subsidised) in Section B of the Pharmaceutical Schedule during the Sole Subsidised Supply period. 
• Other brands could continue to be marketed, sold and dispensed during the Sole Subsidised Supply Status period, but they would not receive a subsidy. 
• Any pharmaceutical that currently carries a manufacturer’s surcharge (that is, the additional patient charge above that of the patient co-payment) would become fully subsidised if a tender was awarded for that pharmaceutical.

Key Aspects of Awarding a Tender for DHB Hospital Pharmaceuticals:

• For DHB hospital pharmaceuticals, the Hospital Supply Status brand would be the only brand DHB Hospitals could purchase (subject to any allowance for alternative brands under the agreed DV Limits) for up to approximately 3 years. The Hospital Supply Status period would conclude on 30 June 2023 for all tenders awarded from the 2019/20 Tender.
• No other brand of the pharmaceutical would be listed in Section H of the Pharmaceutical Schedule during the Hospital Supply Status period.

Key Dates and Timeframes for the 2019/20 Tender:

The proposed timelines for the 2019/20 Tender are as follows:

These are the draft terms and conditions which would form the terms of the 2019/20 Tender contract [PDF, 1.2 MB].

Proposed inclusion of the following provisions in the 2019/20 Invitation to Tender

Supplier Code of Conduct

The New Zealand Government is committed to sustainable and inclusive government procurement and the Supplier Code of Conduct outlines the Government’s expectations of suppliers in this respect.

PHARMAC expects suppliers to meet or exceed the minimum standards set out in the Supplier Code of Conduct and a provision has been included in Schedule 4 of the draft 2019/20 Tender as follows:

“You shall comply with the New Zealand Government’s Supplier Code of Conduct(external link)."

Additional Special Terms

PHARMAC proposes to include additional special terms in Schedule 7 of the 2019/20 Tender for the supply of lacosamide as follows.

In respect of the identified Tender Items in Schedule 2 (lacosamide (current access) tab 50 mg, 100 mg, 150 mg and/or 200 mg or lacosamide (widened access) tab 50 mg, 100 mg, 150 mg and/or 200 mg) (“Lacosamide Tender Items”) and notwithstanding any other provision in this Agreement concerning the Sole Supply Status of the Lacosamide Tender Items, and without limiting any other actions that it may be necessary or appropriate for PHARMAC to take in response to patient safety concerns, PHARMAC may grant subsidised access, on a strictly limited basis, to an alternative brand of the relevant Lacosamide Tender Items during the Sole Supply Period to the extent that this is necessary to enable a limited number of patients to continue treatment following adverse effects or efficacy concerns in their treatment with the relevant Lacosamide Tender Items, in accordance with the following condition:

The maximum number of patients who are treated with the alternative brand of Lacosamide Tender Items shall not exceed 30 patients per calendar year, unless otherwise agreed, during the Sole Supply Period.

For the avoidance of doubt, this clause does not apply to the lacosamide (current access) inj 10 mg per ml, 20 ml Tender Item.

Unresolved Tender Bids

PHARMAC would review any unresolved Tender Bids from the 2017/18 Tender and the 2018/19 Tender prior to issuing the 2019/20 Tender, and may close the tender for some of these tender items, and reissue them as part of the 2019/20 Tender. The following Tender Bids remain unresolved, and may potentially be added to the 2019/20 Tender following consultation:

2017/18 Invitation to Tender