Ministry of Health releases Rare Disorders Strategy Implementation Plan 26/27

The Ministry of Health published the Rare Disorders Strategy Implementation Plan 2026/27 on 24th July 2026, almost two years to the day that the Rare Disorders Strategy was launched.

The Implementation Plan outlines how the health agencies responsible for implementing the Strategy will work towards improving support for people and whānau living with rare disorders over the next year.

Rare Disorders NZ determinedly pursued an implementation plan following the release of the Rare Disorders Strategy to ensure the Strategy would lead to meaningful, systemwide improvements in the responsiveness to rare disorders.

With support from the Minister of Health, Rare Disorders NZ sat down with the four agencies - Manatū Hauora | Ministry of Health, Te Whatu Ora | Health NZ, Pharmac and the Health Quality & Safety Commission on 6th May 2026 to develop this one-year plan, and we provided feedback to the draft iterations of the plan.

Rare Disorders NZ is pleased to have worked collaboratively with the agencies to get the first one-year plan in place. As the Strategy is a 10-year document, Rare Disorders NZ would have liked a more comprehensive framework outlining how improvements to health system responsiveness to rare disorders will be phased over the 10 years in a coordinated and considered manner to support delivery over the life of the Strategy, and we will again emphasise this in our follow-up meeting later in the year.

Rare Disorders NZ will be meeting every 6 months with the implementation agencies to check in on progress, and work collaboratively to develop implementation plans for the following years.

Read the Rare Disorders Strategy Implementation Plan 2026/27 here.