Budget 09: Government injects $3b into nation's health

Health Minister Tony Ryall. Photo / Mark Mitchell

While other sectors are having their belts tightened health has been given a $3 billion injection.

The $3b over the next four years allows the Government to focus on more doctors and cheaper medicine.

Figures announced in the Government budget today show $750 million more a year to be spent on health for the next four years - a total of $3b, or 40 per cent of total government spending.

Click here for the Budget documents

District Health Boards (DHBs) will receive an extra $2.1b to improve front-line services.

Subsidised medicines will receive a $138.8m boost in funding, with an additional $46.9m for Herceptin, bringing the total new funding for subsidised medicines over the next four years to $185.7m.

The budget also provides $45.5m to move services currently provided by hospitals to primary care givers, such as GPs.

Health Minister Tony Ryall said the extra funding was aimed at boosting front-line services.

"The Government is fully committed to providing faster, more convenient front-line health services for New Zealanders."

Almost $117m was provided to train more doctors and nurses and to persuade them to remain in New Zealand.

New Zealand had the highest percentage (36 per cent) of foreign trained doctors of any OECD country and was also a large exporter of trained doctors, Mr Ryall said.

A voluntary bonding scheme and increased undergraduate training spaces will help reverse this theme and "help us build our own capacity at home".

About 60 extra health undergraduate places, worth $25m, will be added next year - working towards an additional 200 places in five years.

New elective surgery super centres will be staffed thanks to $70m set aside for training and 50 new GP training spots will be created by next year with $17.5m.

Health professionals will be encouraged to work in rural areas with $4m.

The voluntary bonding scheme ($15.3m) will give student loan write-offs to doctors, nurses and midwives who agree to work in 'hard to staff areas'.

Other funding included:

* Maternity services will be increased with $103m;

* Houses will be made warmer with $100m for the New Zealand Insulation Fund;

* Aged residential care facilities and home respite care will receive $89.5m;

* Capital infrastructure has been allocated $245m;

* Offenders with intellectual disabilities will be cared for outside the criminal justice system with $37.2m;

* Hospice care will receive a $60m boost.

- NZPA