Pharmacies left out of National’s vax incentive policy

Vaccinators who do not have enrolled populations will continue to receive vaccination payments

Pharmacies will not be included in the National party’s new vaccine incentives plan, health spokesperson Shane Reti has confirmed.

The policy, which was announced on Sunday, will see an incentive payment of $10 per enrolled patient made to general practices that meet all three of its proposed childhood, MMR and influenza immunisation targets by 30 June 2024.

But pharmacies will not receive the incentive payments under National’s scheme, Dr Reti confirms.

“The immunisation incentive payments scheme incentivises primary care providers with enrolled populations,” Dr Reti says in an emailed response to questions.

“Vaccinators who do not have enrolled populations will continue to receive vaccination payments.”

Dr Reti says some providers have asked him about collaborating with non-enrolling vaccinators, such as pharmacists, to achieve the targets.

“A future social investment approach for programs of this type will likely widen the incentive and collaborative parameters,” he says.

Under National’s policy the three immunisation measures that general practices would need to meet by 30 June 2024 to receive $10 per cent per enrolled patient are:

• childhood immunisation (24 months) – improve rate by 5 per cent or achieve a 95 per cent immunisation rate

• MMR immunisation (1-17 years) – improve rate by 5 per cent or achieve a 95 per cent immunisation rate, and

• influenza vaccination (65 years and over) – improve by 5 percentage points or achieve a 75 per cent immunisation rate.

The baseline rate will be the general practice’s immunisation rate as at 31 October 2023 so practices would have eight months to either meet the target or improve current rates by 5 per cent.

National has costed its plan at $52 million to cover every GP clinic in the country achieving all three targets.

*additional reporting Paulette Crowley and New Zealand Doctor Rata Aotearoa