Labour doesn’t accept the coalition government’s ‘spin’ that the health system isn’t ready to deliver Keytruda cancer treatments.
But Health Minister Shane Reti says it finds that view ‘somewhat insulting’.
Te Whatu Ora has decided to stop Keytruda treatments until the drug is funded by Pharmac in October.
This means 20 to 30 patients won’t be able to receive the ‘miracle-drug’ and will instead get less effective treatments that will make them ineligible for Keytruda in future.
Patient Voice Aotearoa chair Malcolm Mulholland said “This has to be the cruellest and dumbest decision made by Health New Zealand to date.”
Labour health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall said, “Te Whatu Ora has been offered Keytruda free of charge but is delaying taking up the offer by two months.”
“Once again Health Minister Shane Reti has shown he is unwilling to push to get patients what they need,” she said.
Reti told Te Ao Māori News, “I find it somewhat insulting for a former minister of health to describe the advice of Health New Zealand clinicians and cancer specialists as government ‘spin.’”
Verrall said Keytruda treated eight cancers and for two of the cancers it would reduce the workload, and only some hospitals had raised concerns on readiness.
She said the government must reveal the difference between now and October that means the medicines can’t be given now.
“It is hard to believe they will have more oncologists or oncology nurses in place in two months, when there is a hiring freeze now,” she said.
Mulholland said the decision was the result of bad planning. He pointed out that early access schemes have existed for the same drug without problems and last year Keytruda was funded for 150 lung cancer patients.
Reti said he looked forward to the implementation of recent $38 million Pharmac funding which will provide greater access to cancer treatments.
The minister has been assured that Health New Zealand is working at pace alongside other agencies to make these treatments available to Kiwis as soon as possible.