The budget will keep the public health sectors lights on, barely, and does not address increasing unmet need, longer
waiting lists and over-stretched staff.
While $1.43 billion has been allocated for health sector cost pressures in 2024/2025, Te Whatu Ora officials indicated
at annual review hearings in March that $1.43 billion is no longer enough to meet cost pressures.
"This will be barely enough to keep the lights on," ASMS Executive Director Sarah Dalton says.
"Health has been underfunded for so long that it needs courageous leadership to give it the funds to deliver an
equitable health system for all.
"This budget falls short."
Adding to further disappointment are the reductions to promised additional medical student numbers to increase the
stretched health workforce.
"National campaigned on increasing medical student numbers by another 50 places in 2025 however only 25 places are
indicated in this budget," Dalton says.
"With 22 per cent vacancy rates amongst senior medical officers in the public health system, we need a greater
commitment to train and retain our current workforce. Any reduction from the promise of 50 is a big problem.
"This budget leaves our health system treading water, our workforce over-stretched and patients left waiting longer and
longer."
Dalton says the addition of emergency department security is a step towards keeping staff safer but the underlying cause
of many violent episodes in EDs stems from the long wait times due to staff shortages and hospital bed block.
"EDs are stressful places," Dalton says. "People are often scared, hurt or in pain and can lash out when wait times boil
over. Having safe staffing numbers, allowing patients to flow through the system rather than get blocked up at the door,
would go a long way to reducing violence in ED waiting rooms.
"New Zealand deserves a commitment from Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, and his coalition partners Winston Peters and
David Seymour, that they will grow our public health workforce and provide the investment to train, recruit and retain
the staff needed."
Information about the state of the healthcare crisis in New Zealand can be found in ASMS’ latest report, " Anatomy of a
Health Crisis".
At a glance:More than one third of all adults have unmet need for health care329,000 adults and 55,000 children have unmet need for mental healthEmergency department presentations increased 22.5 per cent since 2013/2014Wait times for life threatening events grew 51.3 per centClinical directors report a 22 per cent shortage of senior medical officers in their departmentsAs of September 2023, nearly 60,000 patients wait more than four months to see a specialist.
"The clearest action to address all these issues is targeted funding," Dalton says.
"A health care system that really caters for everyone will cost money. We need an urgent enquiry into how we fund our
healthcare system and how to meet future health needs."