Latest News

Pharmax Sativex

February 29, 2024 | Treatments

In December 2023, Pharmac proposed to decline funding for inactive applications, this included an application to fund Sativex for MS spasticity. MSNZ has written to the Pharmac Board to ask that this application remain live and we be permitted to […]


Media Release: “Relief” over Pharmac Decision to Fund First-Ever Treatment for Debilitating Form of Multiple Sclerosis

September 4, 2023 | Advocacy, Media, Progressive, Treatments

A seven year battle on behalf of hundreds of people living with the most debilitating form of Multiple Sclerosis has been won – with Pharmac agreeing to fund Aotearoa New Zealand’s first ever treatment for the disease variant  from October […]


MS in the News: Funded treatment for primary progressive multiple sclerosis

June 26, 2023 | Media, Progressive

Te Pātaka Whaioranga – Pharmac has started a consultation today for widening access for two treatments; ocrelizumab (branded as Ocrevus) as the first funded treatment for primary progressive multiple sclerosis, and emicizumab (branded as Hemlibra) for the treatment of all […]


Addressing the unmet need

September 14, 2022 | Advocacy, Progressive, Treatments

Currently, only approximately 1900 of the over 4130 New Zealanders diagnosed with MS are able to access funded Disease Modifying Therapies (DMTs). In particular, those with progressive forms of MS, Secondary (SPMS) and Primary Progressive MS (PPMS), have extremely limited […]


aHSCT in the news: We’re fed up waiting for it to be made available here

July 26, 2022 | Advocacy, Life with MS, Media, Treatments

A 10,000-strong petition asking Health New Zealand to extend “game-changing” stem cell treatment to multiple sclerosis (MS) patients is set to be delivered to Parliament. The petition started by Aucklander Joan Perry​, whose daughter Anne Besley​ has MS, calls for autologous haematopoietic […]