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Pharmac decision to end funding of RSV-preventative drug 'disappointing' says paediatrician
Morning Report
English - November 08, 2023 18:49 - 4 minutes - 4.5 MB - ★★★★ - 11 ratingsNews Homepage Download Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
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An associate professor and neonatal paediatrician from Auckland University is describing Pharmac's decision not to fund an RSV-preventative drug as "disappointing".
For the last three winters the drug - which is given monthly over winter to high-risk infants to reduce the risk of RSV infection - has been covered by COVID-19 response funding.
But Pharmac says Palivizumab has now been placed on the list of medicines it would like to fund, but which it cannot under its current budget.
Dr Jane Alsweiler spoke to Susie Ferguson.