Special authority data for temozolomide for the treatment of neuroendocrine tumours

11 December 2020

Dear [name and contact details withheld]

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION

Thank you for your request dated 18 November 2020 under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA) for information relating to temozolomide. You asked for:

  • The number of initial applications for temozolomide approved for neuroendocrine tumours
  • The number of applications for renewal approved for neuroendocrine tumours
  • The year the application was made
  • The number of approved special authority renewals
  • The District Health Board the application was made from

Special Authority data for temozolomide used in the treatment of neuroendocrine tumours is provided within this response. 

Breakdown of total initial applications:

  • Submitted: 160
  • Approved: 134
  • Declined: 26 

Breakdown of total renewal applications:

  • Submitted: 87
  • Approved: 53
  • Declined: 34 

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). 

Due to the low application numbers per DHB, we have combined the DHB data to reflect a single total for each financial year as we consider the withholding of this information is necessary to protect the privacy of those patients (section 9(2)(a)). 

Year

Approved

Declined

Initial

Renewal

Initial

Renewal

2016*

14

0

1

2

2017

32

2

7

4

2018

32

12

7

3

2019

21

19

4

14

2020**

35

20

7

11

 Total

134

53

26

34

*dispensing of temozolomide for neuroendocrine tumours began 1 August 2016.

**dispensing data for 2020 is incomplete. This data is current up to 25 November 2020.

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 will 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