The Prime Minister and the Minister of Trade have said repeatedly that New Zealand will not sign up to a free trade agreement that is not in the country's best interests. There has been no suggestion that Pharmac will not retain the right to decide what medicines to purchase and when.
The central issue for the medicines industry within the TPP is simply: What can we do better?
Asking for improvements to how Pharmac operates is not about threatening its existence, but it is about putting health first. We believe that New Zealanders could have access to better medicines if the system was streamlined.
In Pharmac's case, we are asking that it operates in an open and transparent manner, from making a decision within a certain timeframe, to providing clarity about how decisions are made.
This decision-making process has traditionally been closed, with pharmaceutical companies unable to provide input to the clinical committee or answer questions about their products and Pharmac having no obligation to act on recommendations from its clinical advisory committee. The average delay between Medsafe approval of a medicine and Pharmac listing is almost two years, but it can take up to eight years.
Regardless of what happens in these negotiations, Pharmac will remain long after TPP deliberations are complete.
And, just as we are constantly revising business models, we hope the Government will ensure New Zealanders are getting the best possible outcomes from Pharmac.
There is nothing to fear in having a robust discussion about the best way to deliver the best health outcomes. Improving the system is not about threatening its existence, but about putting health outcomes first.
Kevin Sheehy is general manager of Medicines New Zealand.