Hormone medicines dispensing and funding data

OIA response

16 September 2021 

Dear [name and contact details withheld]

Request for information 

Thank you for your request dated 19 August 2021 under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA) for information relating to hormone medicines. You requested: 

The number of doses of the below hormones administered in NZ broken down by sex/gender, age, and gross subsidy

Testosterone / prolactin inhibition 

  • Cyproterone acetate Tab 50 mg; Tab 100 mg
  • Testosterone cipionate Inj 100 mg per ml, 10 ml vial
  • Testosterone undecanoate Cap 40 mg; Inj 250 mg per ml, 4 ml vial
  • Testosterone esters Inj 250 mg per ml, 1 ml
  • Testosterone Patch 5 mg per day
  • Cabergoline Tab 0.5 mg

Estrogen

  • Oestradiol valerate Tab 1 mg; Tab 2 mg
  • Oestradiol Tab 1 mg; Tab 2 mg; Patch 100 mcg per 24 hours; Patch 50 mcg per 24 hours; Patch 25 mcg per day; Patch 50 mcg per day; Patch 75 mcg per day; Patch 100 mcg per day
  • Oestrogens Conjugated, equine tab 300 mcg; Conjugated, equine tab 625 mcg
  • Oestriol Tab 2 mg
  • Progesterone Cap 100 mg

HGH

  • Somatropin (Omnitrope) Inj 5 mg cartridge; Inj 10 mg cartridge; Inj 15 mg cartridge

Please note that PHARMAC approaches its assessment of requests for information under the OIA on the basis that, once released, the information becomes publicly available - in other words once we release the information to you it becomes available to any other party in that exact form (whether by you distributing it to others or by virtue of us receiving the same request from a different third party).

 Where 10 or fewer people were dispensed a medicine, we have changed the number shown to "≤10" as we believe this is necessary to protect the privacy of these people (section 9(2)(a) of the OIA).

As required under the OIA, we also considered whether, in the circumstances, the withholding of this information was outweighed by other considerations which render it desirable, in the public interest, to make this information available.  In this case we did not consider that the public interest outweighed the reasons for withholding the information.

 Please note you have the right, by way of complaint under section 28(3) of the OIA to an Ombudsman, to seek an investigation and review of our decision.

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