The introduction of mifepristone into New Zealand

The first major step in introducing mifepristone into New Zealand was an initiative by the New Zealand Family Planning Association (NZFPA) in November 1990 when Etienne-Emile Baulieu was invited to speak at a seminar in Auckland. In 1992 the World Health Organization (WHO) invited NZFPA to take part in a clinical trial on the use of mifepristone as a postcoital contraceptive but this research was blocked by Roussel, the manufacturers, who were unwilling to risk controversy. The politics of large pharmaceutical companies almost saw the demise of mifepristone until in 1994 the patent was donated to the Population Council in the United States, and in 1997 the commercial rights for the rest of the world excluding China were transferred to Exelgyn, a small French company. No established pharmaceutical firm in New Zealand was interested in taking a commercial risk with a controversial drug, so in February 1999 five doctors formed a not-for-profit company to import mifepristone. In August 2001 the drug was approved for use in New Zealand.