In September 2025, the government announced
that Cabinet has agreed to a new two-agency
approach for medical device procurement, ending
more than 13 years of uncertainty for New Zealand’s
medical technology sector.
The decision splits procurement responsibilities
between Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora and
Pharmac, with each agency taking responsibility for
different categories of medical devices based on
their expertise and operational strengths.
The decision follows years of debate about which
agency should lead medical device procurement. In
2012, recommendations suggested Pharmac should
take responsibility, but this never materialised.
When district health boards merged into Health
New Zealand, recommendations emerged for the
new organisation to handle procurement, but these
were also rejected.
Associate Health Minister David Seymour said
when announcing the decision that the industry
has been “exasperated by the uncertainty” as
“device procurement has been paralysed for at
least 13 years”.
Under the new framework, Pharmac will manage
procurement for technical devices with direct
therapeutic impact on patients, including surgical
implants and anaesthetic machines. Health New
Zealand will oversee devices with higher facility
integration requirements, such as hospital beds,
diagnostic machines, and imaging equipment.
The split recognises that Pharmac brings expertise
in assessing complex therapeutic devices requiring
clinical input, while Health New Zealand is better
positioned to handle equipment that integrates with
hospital facilities and care models.
Despite having separate responsibilities, the
agencies will collaborate on procurement decisions.
Health New Zealand can draw on Pharmac’s
independent evaluation expertise when procuring
equipment such as MRI machines, with Pharmac
providing health technology assessments to inform
procurement processes.
Seymour said that transparency is key to the new
system, with agencies being clear about their
requirements and criteria.
“This gives manufacturers the confidence to invest
in innovation which aligns with demand and meets
contracting criteria,” he said.
At the MTANZ Parliamentary Showcase in August
2025, Seymour told attendees that he wants
Pharmac to become a bridge between innovation
and the patients who need it.
In his Letter of Expectations to Pharmac, Seymour
directed the agency to evaluate its statutory
objectives, update assessment methodologies to
include broader economic and social impacts, and
streamline technology assessment processes.
The letter also requires Pharmac and Health NZ to
strengthen partnerships with the medical devices
industry to improve horizon scanning, enable process
efficiencies, and plan for emerging technologies.