Pharmac Update: Primary Care Prescribers | 13 February 2026
- 11 hours ago
- 4 min read
Below is the latest information on Pharmac consultations, notifications, and supply issues for Primary Care Prescribers for week 13 February 2026. It includes information on:
Discontinuation: Sensocard blood glucose test strips
The supplier has just advised Pharmac that it will be discontinuing Sensocard blood glucose test strips for visually impaired people. The last stock expired at the start of February 2026.
Pharmaco CareSens N is available as an alternative treatment. The test strips are funded, however the voice meter is not currently funded.
The supplier has advised that it is looking into whether it can source some CareSens N Voice Blood Glucose Meters from Pharmaco for affected patients. There is more information to follow.
Supply Issue: Iloprost (Vebulis) 10mcg/mL, 2 mL nebuliser solution There is a supply issue affecting Iloprost (Vebulis) 10 mcg/mL, 2 mL nebuliser solution. The supplier is out of stock. Resupply of the registered product is expected from the first week of March
Devatis is supplying Turkish‑packaged iloprost as a temporary alternative, this will be supplied under Section 29A of the Medicines Act and was listed in the Pharmaceutical Schedule 09/02/2026.
The medicine is identical in formulation and strength to the registered New Zealand‑supplied Vebulis product and is compatible with the nebulisers patients already use for the registered product. The outer carton will be over‑labelled in English. The individual nebules will have some Turkish text.
More information about this supply issue can be found at the following link - Iloprost (Vebulis) nebulisers: Supply issue
Discontinuation: amiloride hydrochloride 5 mg with furosemide 40 mg (Frumil tabs)
Sanofi the supplier is discontinuing Frumil tablets. This is a global discontinuation, due to low usage. Please consider prescribing a funded, Medsafe approved, suitable alternative for affected patients. It is estimated Frumil tabs stock will be depleted by the end of February 2026.
Discontinuation: Humalog, Humulin NPH, Humulin 30/70, Humulin R 10 ml insulin vialsThe supplier Eli Lilly is discontinuing 4 insulins in the 10ml vial presentation. Please begin transitioning your patients to suitable alternatives.
The 3ml penfill presentations remain available.
Insulin Type | Brand | Presentation | Date Supplier stops selling |
Insulin lispro | Humalog | Inj 100 u per ml, 10 ml vial | End June 2026 |
Insulin isophane | Humulin NPH | Inj human 100 u per ml, 10 ml vial | End June 2026 |
Insulin isophane with insulin neutral | Humulin 30/70 | Inj human with neutral insulin 100 u per ml, 10 ml vial | End June 2026 |
Insulin neutral | Humulin R | Inj human 100 u per ml, 10 ml vial | End March 2026 |
There is information regarding use of insulin and changes in the supply of various insulins. NZSSD website noticeboard - external link
Supply issue: omeprazole (Dr Reddy’s Omeprazole) inj 40 mg ampoule with diluent
There have been further delays with this product. The supplier has sourced an alternative - the Ocicure brand is available and has been used during previous supply issues. This brand is not a Medsafe approved product and will need to be prescribed and dispensed in line with Section 29A of the Medicines Act.
Supply issue: Duolin Nebuliser soln, salbutamol 2.5 mg with ipratropium bromide 0.5 mg per vial, 2.5 ml ampoule
Duolin nebules are in short supply. Rex the supplier has sourced an alternative product - Albuterol 3mg with ipratropium bromide 0.5 mg/ 3ml vial, brand name Cipla, listed from 1 February 2026.
This is not a Medsafe approved product and will need to be prescribed and dispensed in line with Section 29A of the Medicines Act, (therefore not available on PSO.)
This medicine is labelled albuterol sulfate instead of salbutamol sulphate. Albuterol is the USA official generic name for salbutamol.
Note - albuterol sulfate 3mg (equivalent to albuterol base 2.5mg) is equivalent to salbutamol 2.5mg
The supplier has over-labelled the carton, and inner foil pack to replace the word albuterol with salbutamol, however the individual vials will still be labelled albuterol.
A webpage with a downloadable patient leaflet is available to help reassure patients about this brand change Duolin nebules on Pharmac website
Pharmac decision: Improving access to treatments in the community for trauma and medical emergencies, and ketamine for palliative care
Please follow this link to the Pharmac decision regarding improving access to treatments in the community for trauma and medical emergencies, and ketamine for palliative care
We want to make sure that everyone who needs to know about this decision is aware of it. Please share this information with people you think might be interested.
Pharmac confirms changes to simplify biologic medicine funding criteria
We’re letting you know that Pharmac has made a decision to change the funded access criteria for infliximab, etanercept, secukinumab and rituximab.These changes update the Special Authority and Hospital Indication Restrictions for these medicines to simplify and align the criteria where possible. Most of the changes relate to wording and consistency, and the overall intent of the criteria remains the same. However, in some instances we have made more substantive changes, including:
extending approval durations
allowing a wider range of prescribers to apply for funding
removing renewal requirements for some conditions
These changes reflect feedback received during consultation and support Pharmac’s commitment to reducing administrative burden and improving access to funded treatments. No criteria are becoming more restrictive, and this decision does not include widening access to new indications.
More information about the decision is available on our website: Decision to update the access criteria for infliximab, etanercept, secukinumab, and rituximab.
The updated criteria will take effect from 1 March 2026.
Resolved Supply Issues:
Supply issues are marked as resolved when stock arrives in the country and is released to wholesalers. After this, it can take another 1-2 weeks for pharmacies to receive stock, depending on where they are located around New Zealand.
Atorvastatin (Lorstat) Tab 80 mg (Viatris)
Epoetin alfa (Binocrit) Inj 40,000 iu in 1 ml, syringe (Sandoz)
Ethinyloestradiol with norethisterone (Norimin) Tab 35 mcg with norethisterone 500 mcg and 7 inert tab (Pfizer)
Glucose [Dextrose] (Biomed) Inj 50%, 10 ml ampoule (Biomed)
Olanzapine (Zypine) Tab 10 mg (Viatris)
Pregabalin (Lyrica) Cap 75 mg (Aspen)
