The Government’s plan to overhaul the public health system is being met with conditional support and questions by east Auckland-based members of the Counties Manukau District Health Board.
And Pakuranga MP Simeon Brown believes the Government’s health reforms will only exacerbate the problem. He has also underlined National’s opposition to a Māori Health Authority.
Health Minister Andrew Little, who announced the plan on April 21, says the move will make healthcare more accessible to all Kiwis.
The changes include replacing district health boards with a national organisation named Health New Zealand and creating a new public health agency.
Health NZ will be responsible for running hospitals and commissioning primary and community health services. It will have four regional divisions.
The changes will also see a new Maori Health Authority created with the power to commission health services, monitor the state of Maori heath and develop policy.
A “strengthened” Ministry of Health will monitor performance and advise the Government on health matters.
Little says putting a greater emphasis on primary healthcare and ensuring fairer access for all New Zealanders are two of the main drivers of the reforms.
“We are going to put the emphasis squarely on primary and community healthcare and will do away with duplication and unnecessary bureaucracy between regions so that our health workers can do what they do best – keep people well.”
The reforms will be phased in over three years to ensure existing services are not disrupted.
The Times asked the Counties Manukau DHB’s three east Auckland-based members, Paul Young, Katrina Bungard, and Garry Boles, what they think of the changes.
Young says he supports the direction of the health reform package.
He says his priority is to improve community health outcomes and health access, particularly for ethnic and migrant health users.
“As we recently experienced a couple of months ago with the Covid outbreak in east and south Auckland, urgent health information did not always reach ethnic communities quickly enough due to language barriers.
“This will continue to be a great challenge and opportunity for the Government and I will be watching very closely how the new entity [Health NZ] proposes to reach and respond to our diverse communities, particularly across Auckland and the Counties Manukau DHB [area].”
Bungard says while she can see some advantages in streamlining healthcare, “there is always a trade-off for any perceived benefit”.
“My main concern regarding the reforms is around maintaining local voice for community health.
“I believe by replacing all DHBs across the country we will see our regions and smaller communities lose their voice and their autonomy which will have a real impact, particularly in relation to equity funding for Counties Manukau.
“With our disproportionately large community healthcare needs and Maori and Pasifika population, my concern sits with how well Counties’ complex issues will be addressed centrally.”
Boles says the planned health reforms are “not a bad idea”. He says the sector needs more investment and it would be positive if the changes result in less money being wasted.
“I see a lot of money being used on consultants and advisors and if all the money was in one place it could be more efficient.”
Pakuranga MP Simeon Brown told the Times, “National does not support a Māori Health Authority as we strongly believe the treatment you receive shouldn’t depend on your ethnicity, but should depend on who needs it the most.
“Most concerning is the fact that the Māori Health Authority is proposed to have veto power over health policies for the remainder of the population.
“East Auckland already suffers from a lack of locally delivered health services, as evidenced by the recent closure of East Care’s overnight service.
“Centralising New Zealand’s health system is only going to make this problem worse, particularly if the Government insists on prioritising money based on issues other than health need.”
