Consultation on the comprehensive list set for February 2025

Pharmac is close to having a comprehensive list of medical devices used by Health New Zealand Hospitals.  

Andrew Davies, Manager, Medical Devices Funding, says that his team have been working hard to deliver a comprehensive list of medical devices by 1 July 2025. 

“Once the list of medical devices is comprehensive  it will provide a clear indication of what items are funded and used in public hospitals. This list will improve transparency and consistency of medical device funding and procurement,” Davies says. 

Consultation will open in February and will run until the end of March 2025. Pharmac plans to share this list with suppliers, Health New Zealand, and other interested parties. 
 
Suppliers will be asked to check the list for their products, and they will be able to provide details for products that are currently in use that aren’t on the list. 

“It's really important that we get feedback from suppliers so we can identify any products missing from the Health System Catalogue or the Pharmac list,” Davies says. 
 
Eventually hospitals  will only be able to buy items from the list, which is why its important that it covers what is used now. Suppliers that have maintained their Health System Catalogue information should have less to feedback on, and we will require less information about products that are not on the list, but are in the Health System Catalogue. 

After the consultation, Pharmac will use the feedback to confirm the list. 

“After consultation closes, our first step is to review the feedback we’ve received and make any changes to the draft list and Schedule rules that are needed. We’ll also communicate the outcome to respondents,” Davies says.

Pharmac engaging with orthopaedics sector

Senior Device Category Managers Taylor Wilson and Senior Device Category Manager/ Team Lead Alyssa Currie  from our Device Funding team recently attended the New Zealand Orthopaedics Association (NZOA) Annual Scientific Meeting in New Plymouth.

The meeting’s theme was 'Navigation and Robotics in Orthopaedics,' and involved two days of talks about orthopaedic implants, robotics and software, and presentations on a range of orthopaedic research papers.

"The meeting was a great opportunity to meet with clinicans and discuss Pharmac's medical devices programme," says Currie.   

"It gave us a chance to talk more about our work developing expert advice groups, and we were able to explain how we work with Health New Zealand." 

The Annual Scientfic Meeting was also a  chance to talk to suppliers about the device markets, and learn about future  innovations.  

Our Devices team is continuing to make an effort to use events like this to connect with suppliers and health professionals - your feedback is incredibly valuable. 

Devices Contracts 101 - Secondary Procurement 

Did you know that some Pharmac agreements contain a secondary procurement clause?
This clause allows for a secondary process undertaken when purchasing medical devices.

This could mean a different price being paid for medical devices and their additional services from what is set out in the agreement in some circumstances.

Secondary procurement is used when there are complicated configuration requirements  for medical devices, or large fleet purchases for medical devices.

Because hospitals have detailed requirements for these types of products, this can’t always be accommodated in the initial agreement. Using a secondary procurement process allows hospitals to get the best configuration and pricing based on their specific needs. 

Pharmac will include a secondary procurement clause when suppliers propose to list devices in appropriate categories.

If a supplier is looking to provide an alternative procurement offer that is not set out in their agreement with Pharmac, please contact us. We will advise the right approach to ensure compliance with the contract. 

Health System Catalogue

The Health System Catalogue (HSC) is increasingly becoming the main source of product data for the health system. It will help Pharmac improve data alignment and unlock future opportunities for both suppliers and health system users. 
 
The latest update from HSC shows:

• 197 suppliers are live
• 197 suppliers have published pricing
• 79.6% of suppliers are on Pharmac contracts
• 220,834 active items in supplier catalogues
• 123,030 prices published

If you need to discuss any issues you are having, or you would like to publish a data set, please contact Ian Malone, Supplier Engagement Lead.

As we approach the busy December freight season, it's timely to include a reminder about suppliers’ obligations when it comes to delays.

Suppliers are obliged  to report any potential failure to supply a medical device. Please report these to your Pharmac Contract Manager, and  include the following information: 

• the supplier product code; description, the reason for the failure to supply and when it occurred
• average usage in the previous 12 months by Hospital 
• stock on hand, and when the issue will be resolved
• if the supplier, or another NZ supplier, has an alternative product available and the price difference.

Subscribe to Device Advice

Have you been forwarded this email? Are you interested in receiving it regularly? If so, subscribe to Device Advice!