10. Question No. 10—HealthHon MICHAEL WOODHOUSE (National) to the Minister of HealthQuestion No. 10—HealthHon MICHAEL WOODHOUSE (National): Thank you Mr Squeak—Speaker. My question is to—[Interruption]SPEAKER: Well my granddaughter calls me Mr Talker".10. Hon MICHAEL WOODHOUSE (National) to the Minister of Health: Did he receive any advice about the $200 million in reprioritised medicine in Budget 2018 being redirected to nurse salary increases rather than the purchase of new medicines; if so what was the nature of that advice?Hon Dr DAVID CLARK (Minister of Health): Fakalofa lahi atu. Up until this year Pharmac managed the district health boards' (DHBs') community drug-buying budget while the DHBs held their own budget for buying hospital medicines. Earlier this year Pharmac took over responsibility from DHBs for buying all of their medicines which Treasury forecasts say will save close to $200 million over four years through Pharmac's purchasing power. That change was made earlier this year creating one-off savings for DHBs in the 2017-18 financial year. Given the inadequacy of the health budget put forward in 2017 by the previous Government I made it clear to DHBs that any savings in the 2017-18 year could be used to offset the cost of wage settlements. Following the member's questions yesterday officials have searched and have been unable to find any record of advice about using the forecast future savings for nurses' salaries.Hon Michael Woodhouse: Why did he not take the opportunity to invest the $200 million of reprioritised funds into new medicines?Hon Dr DAVID CLARK: There are always competing demands in the health sector. The budget for Pharmac has not been cut as a result of these savings. What is actually happening is more medicines are being bought for more New Zealanders with the same amount of money. Additional money in the health budget is something I am always seeking as health Minister and there are a range of competing priorities.Hon Michael Woodhouse: How many new medicines were actually funded in Budget 2018?Hon Dr DAVID CLARK: As the member knows the decisions around which new medicines are purchased and when are the responsibility of Pharmac.Hon Michael Woodhouse: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. The question wasn't addressed. I didn't ask who was responsible for purchasing; I asked how many new medicines were funded.SPEAKER: And I think both members understand the way the system works.Hon Michael Woodhouse: Speaking to that point Mr Speaker?SPEAKER: No the member's not speaking to the point. The member will resume his seat. He can take another supplementary if he wants to.Hon Michael Woodhouse: Does he think it's acceptable that New Zealand women are selling their houses or setting up Givealittle pages to pay for cancer medicines that are routinely funded in comparable countries?Hon Dr DAVID CLARK: The medicines raised in the House yesterday are currently under examination for funding by Pharmac. It is true that there are some countries that have some medicines that New Zealand does not have but I don't think the member has changed his position and now wants to undermine the Pharmac model. If he has he would need to explain to New Zealanders how we should make do with fewer drugs because we wouldn't be able to afford the drugs that we have. And on top of that I would also note that that party opposite when they were in Government had the opportunity to fund the health budget better and instead they cut money out of the budget. New Zealanders have a lot of catching up to do. It will take several Budgets to make sure the health system is funded as well as we would like to see it funded."