Health Unions Call for Fast-Track Approval and Funding of RSV Vaccines in New Zealand
核心洞察
Two New Zealand health unions, NZRDA and APEX, are urging the Ministry of Health and Pharmac (搜索) to fast-track approval, funding, and distribution of RSV vaccines for at-risk populations.
RSV causes an estimated 2,000 hospitalisations of children under 5 each year in New Zealand, at a cost of roughly $25 million annually.
Immunisations for the elderly, immunocompromised adults, pregnant women, and infants are under consideration by Medsafe (搜索) but remain unfunded by Pharmac (搜索).
Two New Zealand health unions are calling on the Ministry of Health and Pharmac (搜索) to organise fast-track approval, funding, purchase, and distribution of vaccines that protect against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) (搜索). The New Zealand Resident Doctors' Association (NZRDA) (搜索), representing 3,000 resident doctors, and the APEX Union (搜索), representing 6,000 allied, scientific, and technical health professionals, are seeking expedited processes to get RSV vaccines into the arms of at-risk New Zealanders, with the goal of keeping more people healthy over winter and out of hospital.
"Our public hospitals are under immense pressure; we should be doing everything we can to reduce that pressure," said Dr Deborah Powell, National Secretary of NZRDA and APEX. "Just as we have 'flu and Covid vaccination programmes, we would expect to see the Ministry of Health and Pharmac (搜索) working efficiently to get RSV vaccines deployed for those at risk in New Zealand."
Disease Burden and Unmet Need
RSV is a major driver of seasonal respiratory illness in New Zealand. The virus causes an estimated 2,000 hospitalisations of children under 5 each year, at an estimated cost of $25 million annually. Over the last month, PHF Science has been tracking RSV, which has emerged as the second most common virus detected among hospitalisations in the Auckland region.
Despite this burden, the unions note that there appears to be little urgency applied to bringing new and effective vaccines to New Zealand, including those already approved and funded in Australia.
Vaccines Under Consideration but Not Funded
Immunisations exist for the most at-risk groups, including the elderly, immunocompromised adults, pregnant women, and infants. These vaccines are at various stages of consideration by Medsafe (搜索), New Zealand's medicines regulator, but are not yet funded by Pharmac (搜索).
"Keeping our health system together requires more than just hoping for the best," said Dr Deborah Powell. "We need to proactively adopt all the tools we can to help reduce the burden of disease on our people and our system. Making RSV vaccinations available and free would be one important means to do this," concluded Dr Powell.