It's time for New Zealand to catch up with the rest of the world

That's the message from Associate Health Minister David Seymour, who's just announced Pharmac's budget is being bolstered by more than 1.7 billion over the next four years.

Seymour says the current funding model for the drug-buying agency is outdated, and is in desperate need of more funding.

He says now is the right time for the Government to provide that extra funding.

Seymour says the Government's doing this at a time when a revolution is taking place in medical technology and the opportunities are manifest.