News

Pharmac has decided to fund letermovir, a medicine that helps prevent serious viral infection in people with very weak immune systems. From 1 May 2026, letermovir will be funded for people who have had a stem cell transplant, as well as a small number of other people with severe immunosuppression who cannot use other funded antiviral medicines. This decision follows public consultation and strong feedback from clinicians involved in stem cell transplant care, patient groups, and Pharmac’s...

Our latest webinars and podcast for you:  Whole of life protection: A focus on adult vaccination WEBINAR 14 April: Nikki Turner on the importance of adult immunisation as part of comprehensive preventive care in primary practice.  Register here   Redefining insomnia management WEBINAR 21 April: David Cunnington, a specialist sleep physician, will review contemporary insomnia management, including CBT-I, and discuss the role of medications, including lemborexant, a newer agent.  Register here...

Pharmac is now consulting publicly on potential brand changes for medicines included in the 2025/26 annual tender.   Consultation on possible brand changes through the annual tender This year, around a third of the over 400 items that were tendered may result in a brand change. We want to ensure that any decisions we make are informed by the experiences and needs of prescribers and the people they care for. Consultation opens on Wednesday 8 April and closes on Monday 4 May. More information...

Issue 339 - 2 April 2026 Welcome to the fortnightly Health Improvement and Innovation Digest. The Digest has links to key evidence of interest, with access to new content arranged by topic. You can forward this newsletter to others who may be interested in receiving it. They can register and subscribe here . You can also access other recent issues of the digest here. If you have any queries, please email us at  library@health.govt.nz If you have any queries, please email us at ...

We are pleased to announce our decision to widen access to nivolumab and ipilimumab for treatment of resectable melanoma. From 1 May 2026 , nivolumab in combination with ipilimumab will be funded for people with stage 3B to stage 4 melanoma that can be removed with surgery. This decision was informed by consultation feedback from people with melanoma, their whānau, advocacy groups, clinicians and other health sector stakeholders. You can read the full decision here:  Decision to widen access...

This RCT 1  enrolled 437 secondary care patients aged ≥65 years (mean 75) with CHA₂DS₂-VASc scores ≥2 in men and ≥3 in women. Participants were assigned to 6-month (180-day) monitoring, using an Apple smartwatch with photoplethysmography and single-lead ECG functions, or to standard care.  Over 6 months, atrial fibrillation (AF) was detected in 21 patients (9.6%) in the intervention group versus 5 (2.3%) in controls. Several asymptomatic AF episodes were identified only in the intervention...