HERCEPTIN victory!

[Colapop]

Fantastic news that the gubbermint is extending Herceptin to a 12 month course!

http://www.stuff.co.nz/4788543a20475.html

"Pharmac fully respects the democratic process that has led to the Government's decision to fund 12-month treatment with Herceptin"

The women of this country who made a stand and raised awareness & funds should be congratulated as the absolute legends that they are! Awesome to see that things can be achieved if you stay commited to your cause.
Well done Max (Maxworldbiker) Kari (Nasty) Jen (MyGSXF) and all the other women and people who made this happen. Once again - well done!! :2thumbsup

[Quasievil]

Fantastic news that the gubbermint is extending Herceptin to a 12 month course!

http://www.stuff.co.nz/4788543a20475.html

"Pharmac fully respects the democratic process that has led to the Government's decision to fund 12-month treatment with Herceptin"

The women of this country who made a stand and raised awareness & funds should be congratulated as the absolute legends that they are! Awesome to see that things can be achieved if you stay commited to your cause.
Well done Max (Maxworldbiker) Kari (Nasty) Jen (MyGSXF) and all the other women and people who made this happen. Once again - well done!! :2thumbsup

Whats more if you paid for the drug between Nationals sworn in date and when the drug is available you can pply for a full reimbursement from the government.

Go National !!! Shame on the Labour cronnies :bash:

[Pussy]

Great news... it's good to see "our girls" efforts weren't wasted!

Big ups to you girlies! :niceone:

[Finn]

Well done ladies and good on National! Told Pharmslack to go...

[Genestho]

Well done Ladies! I have supported this in my own way.
I heard on the News today "a womans lobby group" has stuck the boot in and opposed this decision.
Every cause needs a nemisis.
Well done

[MSTRS]

HERCEPTIN Victory!!


Well done all.


"Pharmac fully respects the democratic process that has led to the Government's decision to fund 12-month treatment with Herceptin"

What a pack of 2-faced pricks.

Now, how's about turning the guns on 'another quasi-govt' pack of pricks....

[laserracer]

:niceone:well done

[Swoop]

Amazing what a change of gubbinment can do...

[RantyDave]

Fantastic news that the gubbermint is extending Herceptin to a 12 month course!
National looked at the available options for buying votes and this was the cheapest. It's a victory for detailed market research and strategic thinking but the Kiwi tax payer is going to get fucked up the arse by a drug company again.

Does it not strike *ANYONE* that we pay some very smart people to work out which drugs represent value for money and which ones don't? That, perhaps, these people actually know what they are doing? That, perhaps, drug companies trying to sell a chemical that might do something or might not are very good a whipping up a media frenzy where necessary?

We've all been done. It's five grand a week in smarties. So where's the money coming from? Shall we make some cuts in, say, maternity services? Didn't think so.

Dave

[Blossom]

WOOT!!! That is so excellent!!!

[ynot slow]

Well done girls,but guys more people die of bowel cancer than breast or prostate cancer.Any chemical which helps you live has to be great,or prevents illness later on as well.Money shouldn't come into the equation,shit how often do we hear of little native boy from backblocks of what the farkawe come here for free treatment for them,shitloads for taxpayers in costs.And they are not even taxpayers here.

[reofix]

This is bollocks ... now we have politicians making clinical decisions for political reasons ... every extra dollar spent on Herceptin is a dollar that doesnt get spent on someone else's needed medication ... cheering is a selfish and stupid response to this decision...

[McDuck]

This is bollocks ... now we have politicians making clinical decisions for political reasons ... every extra dollar spent on Herceptin is a dollar that doesnt get spent on someone else's needed medication ... cheering is a selfish and stupid response to this decision...

but it is coming strait form the goverment. I am happy for this to happen, it is unfair to not provide this. Anyway there will be plenty of cash once national starts its work, heck they have alredy saved 200k from a BS conference.

[pete376403]

Something I never understood was that the only given options were for either a 9 week or 52 week course.
If the drug co was (obviously) pushing the 52 weeks and 9 weeks was considered (probably) enough, why didn't they compromise on something like 26 weeks. Still three times longer than the minimum, but half the price of the ful years worth.

But a dangerous precendent has been set - any vocal lobby group will be able to get the Govt to bypass Pharmacs decisions, if the Govt thinks it is politically worthwhile. Govt might as well disband Pharmac and just buy drugs on the basis of who will vote for them.

[Nasty]

This is bollocks ... now we have politicians making clinical decisions for political reasons ... every extra dollar spent on Herceptin is a dollar that doesnt get spent on someone else's needed medication ... cheering is a selfish and stupid response to this decision...

Hmmm ... interesting point ... are you a clinician .. .as the clinicians at Pharmac twice recommended twelve months funding and got told no.

Do you know the background.

There are plenty of people who miss out on their drugs through stupid fundiang decisions ... but shit happens .. and this is not a bad decision and others will not miss out because of it. I am one of those who misses out because of their other decisions and can not access the drugs I apparently need, but I will get over that .. my disease will not kill me .. but this type of cancer does.

[reofix]

if you are happy to take others healthcare funding for your own selfish needs then you are just another greedy "me generation" idiot ... we need a proper plan here .... and pharmac though maybe flawed was at least an attempt to allow justice not self interest to rule... climbing over the dead bodies of others health needs while achieving your own is immoral!! and someone does suffer for the key interference here... i did vote national but this is unconscionable.

[ynot slow]

This and other pharmac,drug company decisions won't matter until it is your body,partners or kids needing treatment.Don't really think most women using herceptin want to be on it longer than they need to due to side effects etc.

Can tell you after 6 months of chemo the novelty wears off,depending on your regime,be it once a week each month or daily for a week each month,me it was daily for a week,but throw in a 150km round trip each day when at the hospital for a week is not fun,and seeing people having same treatments and not finishing them is bloddy tough,the humour in oncology leaves most stand up comedians for dead(pun).

[McDuck]

if you are happy to take others healthcare funding for your own selfish needs then you are just another greedy "me generation" idiot ... we need a proper plan here .... and pharmac though maybe flawed was at least an attempt to allow justice not self interest to rule... climbing over the dead bodies of others health needs while achieving your own is immoral!! and someone does suffer for the key interference here... i did vote national but this is unconscionable.

Yes we need to kick all the pen pushers out and use the money for crap that is actually needed. like flavored condoms.

[Forest]

Hmmm ... interesting point ... are you a clinician .. .as the clinicians at Pharmac twice recommended twelve months funding and got told no.

Do you know the background.


I work with a couple of epidemiologists, so I do know some of the background.

Increasing the treatment course to 12 months is not backed by clinical evidence and this is the reason why Pharmac wasn't prepared to support it. All this change in policy has achieved is the diversion of health-care dollars that would have been better spent elsewhere.

I realise that National did this to help them win the election. But it shits me a little that people think that this decision will save more lives. I can assure you that it will not.

[Lias]

One of the most obvious (to me at any rate) ways to save money in our overburned health system is to cut off all public medical support to non permanent residents (or possibly even non citizens). Any foreigner here should have private medical/travel insurance to pay the bills for private care, and if they don't well fuckem they can stay in jail after they are better until they pay the bill.

They also need to be lots more vigilant about letting in immigrants with health problems. Anyone remember whole zimbabwean aids debarcle? Or the tongan wife beater on dialysis, or any of the other high profile immigrant health debarlces of the last 10 years.

[RantyDave]

http://www.stuff.co.nz/0a17217.html

[Skyryder]

This is bollocks ... now we have politicians making clinical decisions for political reasons ... every extra dollar spent on Herceptin is a dollar that doesnt get spent on someone else's needed medication ... cheering is a selfish and stupid response to this decision...

Yes it is. This is being funded at the taxpayers expense and due to commercial sensitivity the taxpayer will never know what this is costing or if it is indeed value for money. It is interesting that much of the Nats campaign was based on the partnership of Government (that's our tax ) and the private sector, kiwis will see more of their dollar going to private enterprise and never be able to see what it costs due to 'commercial sensitivity.'


Skyryder

[MisterD]

I work with a couple of epidemiologists, so I do know some of the background.

Increasing the treatment course to 12 months is not backed by clinical evidence and this is the reason why Pharmac wasn't prepared to support it. All this change in policy has achieved is the diversion of health-care dollars that would have been better spent elsewhere.

I realise that National did this to help them win the election. But it shits me a little that people think that this decision will save more lives. I can assure you that it will not.

Know any oncologists? MacDoctor does (http://www.macdoctor.co.nz/?p=928) and he disagrees with you...


I don’t know of a single oncologist (cancer specialist) who thinks Pharmac made a reasonable decision. Zip. Nada, Zero. Perhaps National should reply that Pharmac had set a “dangerous precedent by overruling medical experts”.

[Nasty]

I work with a couple of epidemiologists, so I do know some of the background.

Increasing the treatment course to 12 months is not backed by clinical evidence and this is the reason why Pharmac wasn't prepared to support it. All this change in policy has achieved is the diversion of health-care dollars that would have been better spent elsewhere.

I realise that National did this to help them win the election. But it shits me a little that people think that this decision will save more lives. I can assure you that it will not.


So you work with people who study health ... and are still not a clinician ... not surprised.

mind you spoken like a true labour supporter ... labour lost .. its not only that National won .. they don't tend to buy votes and reneg unlike the previous government of 9 years.