Asthma inhaler devices dispensed from 2014 to 2020

OIA response

3 August 2021

Dear [name and contact details withheld]

Request for information 

Thank you for your request dated 6 July 2021 under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA) for information relating to asthma inhalers. Further to our response to a previous OIA request, you requested: 

  • The number of inhaler devices dispensed per year, using the same list of inhalers as the early OIA request, up to the end of 2020.
  • Inhalers by type including MDI, DPI and SMI.
  • Any inhalers brought out on a Pharmac contract since 2018 not included on the earlier list.

 Please find the requested data attached, based on inhaler devices dispensed in the community. 

We have not provided data for inhalers dispensed to patients in DHB hospitals on the basis that we do not hold hospital dispensing data (section 18(g) of the OIA). We do hold some hospital purchasing data, however, we have not provided this information as it cannot be made available without extensive collation and research (section 18(f) of the OIA). DHB hospital inhaler use is less than 5% of the overall use in New Zealand.

 As required under the OIA for section 18(f), we have considered whether fixing a charge or extending the time limit of the request would enable us to provide hospital dispensing data. In this circumstance, we do not consider either of these options would enable us to fulfil your request. 

We trust that this information answers your queries. We are making our information more freely available, so we now publish selected OIA responses (excluding personal details) on our website. Please get in touch with us if you have any questions about this. 

Yours sincerely 

Rachel Read
Manager, Policy and Government Services

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