Simvastatin in New Zealand
This article was originally published in The Tan Sheet
Executive Summary
The Medicines Classifications Committee of New Zealand's Ministry of Health unanimously denies HeartCare Plus' application for pharmacy-only sale of simvastatin, according to minutes from a meeting on the reclassification recently made available. Committee members were "not convinced" of "the efficacy of a 10 mg tablet" and said reliable blood tests, blood pressure and physical exams "could not be undertaken at pharmacy-only level." The minutes also announce the committee's approval of pharmacy-only sale of Aventis' Nasacort for allergenic rhinitis. However, the committee deferred its recommendation on classification for Roche's Xenical until it obtains assurance that "pharmacists would be trained to sell the product according to the adopted protocol. The committee convened in May to discuss the switches (1"The Tan Sheet" May 31, 2004, p. 6)...
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