New Zealand Regulatory Update
The New Zealand coalition government has confirmed that the Therapeutic Products Act (TPA) will be repealed before the end of this year, and Natural Health Products will be regulated under legislation separate from the Medicines Act and medical devices.
As the repeal will occur before the Act was intended to come into force, there will be no need for businesses or practitioners to change the way they currently work and operate.
The Associate Minister of Health, Casey Costello, who is responsible for the repeal and replacement of the Therapeutic Products Act 2023 released a media statement on 8 May and writes:
“The current Medicines Act is out of date, but the TPA was not the solution. It would have over-regulated some products and imposed unnecessary costs on consumers, businesses and exporters.”
As the repeal will occur before the Act was intended to come into force, there will be no need for businesses or practitioners to change the way they currently work and operate.
The Associate Minister of Health, Casey Costello, who is responsible for the repeal and replacement of the Therapeutic Products Act 2023 released a media statement on 8 May and writes:
“The current Medicines Act is out of date, but the TPA was not the solution. It would have over-regulated some products and imposed unnecessary costs on consumers, businesses and exporters.”
October update regarding the new Bill for Medical Products (including Medical Devices) and a separate new Bill for Natural Health Products
Pending the repeal of the Therapeutic Products Act, the Ministry of Health (MOH) is starting work on two separate bills to replace it. The Medical Products Bill (MPB) and the Natural Health Products Bill (NHPB). The MOH intends that the MPB will be passed in 2026 and come into effect in 2028. There is no proposed timing yet for the NHPB.
The MOH will be running a webinar discussing the MPB later this month. A webinar discussing the NHPB will run later this year/early next year.
Please subscribe to their newsletter if you'd like to stay up to date and receive an invitation to these webinars.
Pending the repeal of the Therapeutic Products Act, the Ministry of Health (MOH) is starting work on two separate bills to replace it. The Medical Products Bill (MPB) and the Natural Health Products Bill (NHPB). The MOH intends that the MPB will be passed in 2026 and come into effect in 2028. There is no proposed timing yet for the NHPB.
The MOH will be running a webinar discussing the MPB later this month. A webinar discussing the NHPB will run later this year/early next year.
Please subscribe to their newsletter if you'd like to stay up to date and receive an invitation to these webinars.
Our commitment:
FxMed will be working closely with the Natural Health Alliance (NHA). Together with the NHA, we are committed to ensuring sensible, risk-proportionate legislation.
Next steps:
The Minister states in her release that she looks forward to hearing from industry as well as from consumers and practitioners.
Throughout the engagement process, we encourage you to make your feelings known to any industry organisations that you belong to, your local MPs plus the Minister and her team.
