Monoclonal antibodies
M.R.M. made this Official Information request to Ministry of Health
Response to this request is long overdue. By law Ministry of Health should have responded by now (details and exceptions). The requester can complain to the Ombudsman.
From: M.R.M.
Dear Ministry of Health,
In August 2021 it was announced by Hon. Greg Hunt, who is the Australian Minister for Health and Aged Care, that Australians with Covid-19 who are at risk of hospitalisation will now have access to an additional antibody treatment, as the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) announced today it has granted provisional approval for Sotrovimab to be used in Australia.
Sotrovimab is one of a number of monoclonal antibodies that have proven to safely and effectively treat the disease and reduce hospitalisations for people who are most at risk from Covid-19 and those who have one of the following risk factors for disease progression - diabetes, obesity, chronic kidney disease, heart failure, lung disease and moderate to severe asthma. It has in fact been shown to reduce hospitalisation or death by 79 per cent in adults with mild to moderate Covid-19 who are at high risk of progression to severe disease.
Having noted the increasingly vociferous and extremely alarming warnings coming from government and health "experts" that - despite the high and growing level of fully vaccinated persons in NZ - Covid-19 infections will rise exponentially from around 1 December 2021, and knowing that monoclonal antibody treatment would provide an important and beneficial tool in preventing progression of Covid-19 to severe disease, I am needing to ask;
1) Why RNZ's requests to the Ministry of Health - over a period of two weeks - in early August 2021 about monoclonal antibodies did not receive a response?
2) Why University of Otago professor Kurt Krause, an infectious diseases doctor who wrote to the government to try and find out where we are in the process with monoclonal antibodies, also did not receive a response?
3) Why the government has not moved, and fast, on making available to Covid-19 infected patients with risk factors for disease progression at least one monoclonal antibody for use in NZ when Kurt Krause described this treatment as "a game changer" and "extremely important that we acquire this as soon as possible"?
4) When is the government and/or Pharmac going to announce that at least one monoclonal antibody will be available, fully funded, for the benefit of all New Zealanders who need this potentially life saving treatment?
Considering the fear inducing media messages regarding hospitals not being able to cope with increased numbers of Covid-19 infected patients, and the above stated warnings that Covid-19 infections will rise exponentially from around 1 December 2021, and given the fact that following a potential exposure event contacts could be quickly given monoclonal antibodies which would reduce their chances of developing severe illness, I am deeply troubled that approval and availability of this obviously beneficial treatment has not been prioritized and expedited by the government.
Yours faithfully,
M.R.M.
Yours faithfully,
M.R.M.
From: OIA Requests
Kia ora,
Thank you for your request for official information received on 17 October
2021 for:
"1) Why RNZ's requests to the Ministry of Health - over a period of two
weeks - in early August 2021 about monoclonal antibodies did not receive a
response?
2) Why University of Otago professor Kurt Krause, an infectious diseases
doctor who wrote to the government to try and find out where we are in the
process with monoclonal antibodies, also did not receive a response?
3) Why the government has not moved, and fast, on making available to
Covid-19 infected patients with risk factors for disease progression at
least one monoclonal antibody for use in NZ when Kurt Krause described
this treatment as "a game changer" and "extremely important that we
acquire this as soon as possible"?
4) When is the government and/or Pharmac going to announce that at least
one monoclonal antibody will be available, fully funded, for the benefit
of all New Zealanders who need this potentially life saving treatment?”
The Ministry's reference number for your request is: H202114645.
As required under the Official Information Act 1982, the Ministry will
endeavour to respond to your request no later than 15 November 2021, being
20 working days after the day your request was received.
Due to the COVID-19 global pandemic response, the Ministry is experiencing
significantly higher volumes of queries and requests for information. If
we are unable to respond to your request within this time frame, we will
notify you of an extension of that time frame.
If you have any queries related to this request, please do not hesitate to
get in touch.
Ngâ mihi
OIA Services
Government Services
Office of the Director-General
Ministry of Health
E: [1][email address]
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References
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1. mailto:[email address]
From: OIA Requests
Kia ora M.R.M
Thank you for your request for official information, received on 17
October 2021 for:
" 1) Why RNZ's requests to the Ministry of Health - over a period of two
weeks - in early August 2021 about monoclonal antibodies did not receive a
response?
2) Why University of Otago professor Kurt Krause, an infectious diseases
doctor who wrote to the government to try and find out where we are in the
process with monoclonal antibodies, also did not receive a response?
3) Why the government has not moved, and fast, on making available to
Covid-19 infected patients with risk factors for disease progression at
least one monoclonal antibody for use in NZ when Kurt Krause described
this treatment as "a game changer" and "extremely important that we
acquire this as soon as possible"?
4) When is the government and/or Pharmac going to announce that at least
one monoclonal antibody will be available, fully funded, for the benefit
of all New Zealanders who need this potentially life saving treatment?"
We are contacting you to clarify part of your request.
In part 2, you mention the "government". Can you please clarify what you
mean by "government"? We are interpreting this as the Director-General.
Please respond by 28 October 2021 so that we can consider your
clarification in our response to your request.
We look forward to receiving your response.
Ngā mihi
OIA Services
Government Services
Office of the Director-General
Ministry of Health
E: [1][email address]
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References
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1. mailto:[email address]
From: M.R.M.
Dear OIA Requests,
Thank you for seeking clarity.
Insofar as clause 2) is concerned, I cannot say what professor Kurt Krause meant when he told the media that he, and in fact colleagues of his, wrote to "the government" to try and find out where we are n the process with monoclonal antibodies, and that he and they did not receive a response. While it cannot be assumed that the person he and his colleagues tried to obtain the requested information from was Dr Ashley Bloomfield: Director-General of Health and Chief Executive, Ministry of Health, I nonetheless do believe it is very likely that he is the person that Kurt Krause and his colleagues wrote to.
I refer to the link provided below;
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/...
In all other instances where I have referenced "the government" I feel the need to confirm that this was in relation to the elected and current Labour Party government and its Ministry of Health and/or Pharmac who are responsible for making available monoclonal antibodies to Covid-19 infected patients with risk factors for disease progression.
Yours sincerely,
M.R.M.
From: OIA Requests
Kia ora,
Thank you for your Official Information Act (the Act) request. This is
an automatic reply to let you know we received it.
Due to the COVID-19 global pandemic response, the Ministry is experiencing
significantly higher volumes of queries and requests for information. We
will endeavour to acknowledge your request as soon as possible. Further
information about COVID-19 can be found on our
website: [1]https://www.health.govt.nz/our-work/dise...
In accordance with the Act, we'll let you know our decision within no more
than 20 working days. If you'd like to calculate the timeframe, you can
use the Ombudsman's online calculator
here: [2]http://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/
If you have any questions while we're processing your request, please let
us know via [3][email address]
Ngā mihi
OIA Services Team
[4]Ministry of Health information releases
[5]Unite against COVID-19
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1. https://www.health.govt.nz/our-work/dise...
2. http://scanmail.trustwave.com/?c=15517&a...
3. mailto:[email address]
4. https://www.health.govt.nz/about-ministr...
5. https://covid19.govt.nz/
From: OIA Requests
Kia ora M.R.M
Please find attached a letter regarding your request for information.
Ngā mihi
OIA Services
Government Services
Office of the Director-General
Ministry of Health
E: [1][email address]
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References
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1. mailto:[email address]
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