Diabetes Foundation Aotearoa says New Zealand is lagging well behind the rest of the world when it comes to treating the disease

No new drugs for type 2 diabetes have been funded here in 15 years.

The quarter of a million Kiwis living with the disease have been waiting since September to hear if Pharmac would fund empagliflozin and dulaglutide .

Two medicines which Diabetes Foundation chair Doctor Jon Baker says are now standard around the world, preventing the disease progressing to serious complications like renal failure.

He thinks its time the government gave Pharmac the money to fund the treatment for all diabetes patients.