From finger pricks to freedom
For Georgie Hayes, the news that Pharmac would fund her diabetes continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) was a welcome relief after years of finger pricking and manually tracking her blood sugar levels.
Life was admin heavy
“Life was just admin heavy. I was doing injections every day and testing my blood sugar at every meal, so I was ecstatic when I heard the news,” she says.
“I think back to when I was 10, and my mum would wake me up two-to-three times every night to check my blood sugar. This technology will make a real difference for people with diabetes, especially children.”
The process of funding CGMs alongside insulin pumps involved innovation, commercial processes, collaboration, and the input of the wider health and disability system.
How we did it
The process began in February 2023 when Pharmac gave notice of a future procurement opportunity to suppliers. In July 2023, Pharmac invited proposals from suppliers through a request for proposals. Pharmac then developed a proposal to fund CGMs alongside insulin pumps and insulin pump consumables and asked the public what they thought.
“We received significant feedback. While most of the feedback supported our proposal, it was clear that we needed to do further work with clinicians, consumer groups, and suppliers, to better understand the options and the needs of people with diabetes. We knew how important it was to get this right,” says Pharmac Senior Therapeutic Group Manager, Conal Edwards.
People were central to our work
In May 2024, Pharmac extended the funding timeline to ensure we had all the information needed to make the right decision.
Throughout June and July, Pharmac staff met with a large range of people to discuss the feedback. This included the Pharmac Diabetes Advisory Committee, Diabetes NZ, the New Zealand Society for the Study of Diabetes, Health New Zealand, and other government agencies, as well as suppliers, and other interested parties.
Pharmac hosted an online webinar for the first time, attended by over 700 people, to provide an update on the CGM work. This provided the community a chance to engage directly with Pharmac and have their questions and concerns addressed by Pharmac staff.
A decision is made
In August, Pharmac staff presented the updated proposal, including the feedback and amendments made, to the Pharmac Board. The Board approved the proposal and from 1 October 2024, CGMs were funded and available to people with type 1 diabetes, alongside new arrangements for funded insulin pumps and consumables.
Since then, more than 16,000 people with type 1 diabetes have been prescribed funded CGMs.
“It really is a testament to all of the people with type 1 diabetes who saw these devices as life changing for their health care and were determined to work with Pharmac to see them funded,” Edwards says.
Life changing
For Georgie, having access to funded CGMs is ‘life changing’.
“Understanding how to monitor my blood sugars, knowing how certain foods affected me, and when, and how much insulin I should be using has changed my life. Once upon a time you didn’t know how you were going until you felt it. This is better.”