Political debate on fixing Aotearoa New Zealand’s
broken funding model for primary health care is an important
first step but needs a bipartisan approach, NZNO
says.
The Labour Party today announced a policy to
provide all New Zealanders three free GP visits a year,
funded through the introduction of a capital gains tax on
property.
Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa NZNO
primary care spokesperson Tracey Morgan says Labour’s
policy acknowledges what all New Zealanders already know and
Te
Whatu Ora’s own review found around cost barriers and
inequitable access to GPs.
“Funding for primary and
community health care is completely broken. It can cost up
to $100 to see a doctor and patients are likely to have to
wait weeks for an appointment.
“Skyrocketing fees are
pushing doctor visits out of reach for many whānau, the
working poor and now – because of the cost of living crisis
– even the middle class. New Zealanders are turning up
sicker at our hospital Emergency Departments needing even
greater care.
“For years GPs have had to absorb
underfunding through the capitation system which leaves them
no choice but to raise their fees to enable their practices
to remain financially viable.
“It has also meant the
wages of nurses have slipped further and further behind
their hospital counterparts, leading many to leave the
primary and community sector for better paid jobs or to work
in Australia,” she says.
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Tracey Morgan says Labour’s
policy is a welcome first step in a national discussion
around the funding of primary care.
“However, there
needs to be a bipartisan conversation around the need for a
sustainable funding model that addresses affordability and
access issues in primary care. Otherwise the health outcomes
of every day New Zealanders will continue to deteriorate
while health policy remains a political football,” she
says.
