The Cancer Society wants to see a review of Pharmac structures and rules so it can be held accountable for the decisions it makes.
The Government's drug-buying agency has now decided to fund a lung cancer drug it said last year had no meaningful gains.
The funding of pemetrexed, which treats asbestos-caused lung cancer, was announced on Sunday as part of a $60 million Budget boost for the agency.
The Cancer Society's Dr Christopher Jackson is unimpressed with the way in which the funding came about and wants to see an appeal process put in place.
"We think they need to engage with specialists at a much earlier point," he says. "We think their decision-making needs to be much more transparent and we think there needs to be a process where you can engage if they make a decision that seems wrong."
Dr Jackson says New Zealanders are getting access to drugs much later than other countries and are only getting access to the cheapest drugs, not the best.
Newshub.
