MMR vaccine doses purchased, destroyed
Thank you for your request for information relating to vaccines for measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR). The Ministry of Health (Manatū Hauora) transferred your request to Pharmac for response 1 June 2023. You requested:
…records on a yearly basis from the date range listed.
Date Range: 2018-01 to 2023-01
- The number of MMR vaccines purchased by [Pharmac]
- The suppliers of the MMR vaccines
- The total cost of the MMR vaccines including transportation, storage, and usage
- The number of MMR vaccines destroyed
Information related to point four of your request is already publicly available via written parliamentary question (WPQ) 1118 (2023)(external link). The table provided in the response to WPQ 1118 (2023) includes details of all vaccine wastage (e.g., vaccines destroyed due to expiry or damage); listed by year, type of vaccine, number expired, and value.
Table: MMR vaccines purchased by calendar year from 2018 to January 2023
| Calendar year | Number of MMR vaccines purchased (doses) | Total cost (at manufacturer’s price)* |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | 272,810 | $6,820,250 |
| 2021 | 56,000 | $1,400,000 |
| 2020 | 569,520 | $14,238,000 |
| 2019 | 449,327 | $10,521,405 |
| 2018 | 156,000 | $3,900,000 |
*The manufacturer’s price is subject to a confidential rebate which has the effect of reducing the price paid by Pharmac. The net price paid by Pharmac is commercially sensitive information and is withheld under sections 9(2)(b)(ii) and 9(2)(j) of the OIA to avoid prejudice to the commercial position of the supplier, or to Pharmac’s ability to negotiate.
Pharmac purchases MMR and other vaccines from suppliers in New Zealand and pays for the transport, storage and distribution to vaccinators in New Zealand. It is not possible to split out the cost of distribution specific to MMR vaccine as the distribution includes other vaccines.
New Zealand suppliers of funded MMR vaccines over the period
Priorix – GlaxoSmithKline NZ Limited (GSK)
MMR II – Merck Sharp & Dohme (New Zealand) Limited (MSD)
Information about the suppliers / sponsors and manufacturer(s) of funded MMR vaccines(external link) (Priorix and MMR II) can be found on the Medsafe Product/Application search(external link).
Closing
We trust that this information answers your queries. Please note, you have the right to make a complaint to the Ombudsman about our response to your OIA, under section 28(3) of the OIA. Details of how to make a complaint(external link) are on the Ombudsman’s website.
To make information more freely available, we publish selected OIA responses (excluding personal details) on our website. Please get in touch with us if you have any questions about this.