KEY POINTS:
Pharmacies can now submit subsidy claims to the Ministry of Health via a website instead of by floppy disk.
Deputy director-general of information Alan Hesketh said the new online service would be available to all registered pharmacies from December.
Just over half of the 93 million payments currently made by the Ministry's Information Directorate related to pharmacy claims.
Previously, pharmacies made claims manually by submitting details on floppy disks every fortnight and receiving paper-based returns. There were often problems with corrupted disks, causing delays in the processing of claims.
In the future, the online facility could also handle claims from a variety of providers such as laboratories, maternity services and dental care, Mr Hesketh said.
- NZPA
