Proposal to list medical devices supplied by Abbott Medical
Pharmac is seeking feedback on a proposal to list a range of medical devices in Part III of Section H of the Pharmaceutical Schedule.
What we’re proposing
Pharmac is seeking feedback on a proposal to list medical devices supplied by Abbott Medical New Zealand Limited (“Abbott”) in Part III of Section H of the Pharmaceutical Schedule from 1 June 2022 in the cardiology equipment and accessories category, specifically:
- ICDs, pacemakers and associated products
- cardiac heart valves and accessories
- electrophysiology equipment and consumables
Consultation closes at 4pm Friday 29 April 2022 and feedback can be emailed to alyssa.currie@pharmac.govt.nz.
What would the effect be?
From 1 June 2022 medical devices in the above three cardiology categories supplied by Abbott would be listed under a proposed national agreement for all DHB hospitals to purchase under, subject to consultation and approval by Pharmac’s board or delegate (“Agreement”).
The Agreement would not be for sole supply and DHBs can continue to purchase other suppliers’ brands of cardiac heart valves and accessories, electrophysiology equipment and consumables, and ICDs, pacemakers and associated products.
The Agreement would supersede any existing DHB agreements with Abbott for the medical devices included in the Agreement. Any medical device listed in the Agreement and purchased by a DHB would be in accordance with the terms and conditions, including price, stated in the Agreement effective from the date of listing in the Pharmaceutical Schedule.
As part of the Agreement Abbott would provide appropriate educational services that would be tailored to the individual needs of DHBs, in formats and at times as required by DHBs.
Pricing for the medical devices in the Agreement, subject to any prior termination of the Agreement, would not be increased without prior consultation and approval by Pharmac.
Who we think will be interested
- DHB clinical staff in a range of different clinical settings including but not limited to:
- Cardiac service managers
- Cardiac surgeons
- Cardiologists
- Cardiology unit staff
- Procurement and supply chain personnel
- Suppliers and wholesalers
About the medical devices
Cardiac heart valves and accessories
Cardiac heart valves are used for treating patients with heart valve disease through surgically replacing the diseased valve.
Electrophysiology equipment and consumables
Electrophysiology equipment and consumables are used to diagnose and treat cardiac arrhythmias or irregular heartbeat conditions. Medical devices used in electrophysiology suites range from software mapping and ablation tools through to catheters and electrodes.
ICDs, pacemakers and associated products
ICDs, pacemakers and associated products are used for the treatment of irregular cardiac electrical activity. ICD and pacemakers are implanted into a patient’s chest to either ensure continuous regular cardiac activity or to intervene with stimulation where no natural cardiac activation is occurring.
Why we’re proposing this
These ROIs were undertaken to transfer the responsibility for management of products in these categories from New Zealand Health Partnerships to Pharmac. All ROIs were for non-exclusive national agreements for listing on the Pharmaceutical Schedule.
Details about our proposal
The proposal would result in listing 358 medical devices in the Pharmaceutical Schedule as follows:
|
Category |
Brands |
Line items |
|---|---|---|
|
Cardiac heart valves and accessories |
Abbott |
63 |
|
Electrophysiology equipment and consumables |
Advisor, Agilis, Ampere, BRK, Cool Point, EnSite, Fast-Cath, Flexability, Hl-7, ICE, Inquiry, Livewire, Safire, Supreme, Swartz, TactiCath, TactiSys, Therapy, WorkMate Claris |
180 |
|
ICDs, pacemakers and associated products |
Abbott, Allure, Assurity, Confirm, Durata, Ellipse, Endurity, Entrant, Fortify, Isoflex, Merlin, Optim, Optisure, Quadra, Quartet, Quickflex, Unify |
115 |
Further information, including pricing and contractual details, has been provided to DHB Procurement personnel. Clinicians interested in further detail on what this change means for their DHB should engage with their Procurement teams.
To provide feedback
Send us an email: alyssa.currie@pharmac.govt.nz by 4pm 29 April 2022.
All feedback received before the closing date will be considered by Pharmac’s Board (or its delegate) prior to making a decision on this proposal.
Your feedback may be shared
Feedback we receive is subject to the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA). Please be aware that we may need to share your feedback, including your identity, in response to an OIA request. This applies to anyone providing feedback, whether they are providing feedback themselves or for an organisation, in a personal or professional capacity.
We can only keep feedback confidential as allowed under the OIA and other related laws. If you want any part of your feedback treated as confidential, you need to tell us. Please let us know if you want to keep part of your feedback confidential, and why. Is it commercially sensitive, confidential or proprietary, or personal information? Clearly state this and tell us which parts of your feedback you want to keep confidential for these reasons. We will consider your request under our OIA requirements.