"It's supposed to take a maximum of 62 days from referral to treatment," she said, "but for me - and many other people in Hawke's Bay - it's taking much longer."
Mr Timpson was particularly concerned by a health care for profit philosophy which was writing many people out of adequate treatment, and, while buoyed by a pre-budget announcement of funding to ensure full crews for ambulances, Ms Stainton remains concerned about the lagging funding of health services.
National Health target quarterly results in November showed the Hawke's Bay DHB ranked 18th out of the nation's 20 health boards for Faster Cancer Treatment, missing the target of 85 per cent of patients receiving their first cancer treatment within 62 days of being referred, with 66 per cent referred. Only one DHB reached the target.
Ms Lemm said that since 2010 Government funding for the country's 20 district health boards had been cut by $1.85b because inflation, a growing and ageing population and the increasing cost of medicines have not been taken into account.
"We are asking the Government to make up the missing $1.85b in this month's budget," she said. "New Zealanders are entitled to a healthcare system that is there when and where they need it, that takes care of those who care for us, and which provides quality mental health care. We are not getting any of that at the moment."
She said funding the shortfall would pay for an extra 7400 doctors, 27,750 nurses or 111,000 hip operations.
Mr Nash said Labour had been aware "for years" of the cutting of $1.7billion. He was also horrified by stories he was hearing and said: "It's difficult for some people to understad a sum like a billion dollars, but that's where sum is - in those stories."
The petition would be expected through to go a Parliamentary committee.
The St John Ambulance Service welcomed Sunday's announcement by Health Minister Jonathan Coleman that more than $100 million will be included in the Budget to provide double crewing of all emergency ambulance responses, over the next four years.
An increase of 430 frontline jobs nationwide will include 69 more fulltime ambulance service roles in the Hawke's Bay, Whanganui, Central South region, and introduce a new funding model to meet growing demand for ambulance services, while addressing historic shortfalls.
Service chief executive Peter Bradley said: "Ending single crewing is one of the most significant developments in our ambulance service history."
It would provide rural New Zealand with the same crewing levels as urban areas, which he said "will save more lives and make it safer for our crews".