National is stuffing up health

Written By: - Date published: 10:02 am, October 8th, 2024 - 10 comments
Categories: casey costello, Christopher Luxon, Shane Reti - Tags:

Mountain Tui has posted a couple of really important posts on health recently.

His post on how the Government is creating a crisis so that it can privatise NZ healthcare strikes a real chord. We have seen 40 years of this sort of behaviour. The first thing right wing governments do is create a crisis. The second thing they do is privatise publicly owned assets and systems and hand them over to their rich mates. Enrichment and not improvement is their only goal.

His further post where’s the oomph is a call to arms to oppose this activity.

Certainly I believe there is a plan to privatise as much of Health as the Government can manage. But there is also the damage being caused to Health through incompetence and the need to cut costs so that they can give landlords a tax break.

Three pieces of evidence which have emerged over the past week to show that this is the case. In terms of dealing with infrastructure issues,

National Party aligned journalist Janet Wilson said this about National’s approach to Dunedin Hospital:

The most important figures to take note of in the hospital debate is the $1.88 billion set aside for the project which has blown out to $2.1b when $225 million for data and digital services is included, and the estimated $3b total cost that Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop and Health Minister Shane Reti claim it “could approach”.

Part of that projected $3b includes $400m for a car park and a pathology lab, which were always part of National’s pre-election pledge anyway.

I was not aware that National had made this extra pledge. But if it had then the increase in cost is directly attributable to its election promise. It needs to own this issue.

Wilson claims that Labour can be criticised for its delay in getting the hospital open. But it funded and fast tracked the resource consent application and part of the new hospital is being built now all during a period of six years. This is putting a major project on steroids. I would challenge anyone to point out such a large complex project being advanced as quickly.

In other Health related news Casey Costello goes from crisis to crisis. It is getting more and more difficult to justify the setting aside of $216 million for a tax cut for Philip Morris in the hope that the use of heated tobacco products would increase.

Her doing her own research on the utility of the use of HTPs is farcical. As is Christopher Luxon’s complete lack of control over the process. Fancy putting aside this much money to subsidise the cost of HTPs and not even have a process in place to measure the effectiveness of the policy.

And that $216 million could be put to other good use, such as for instance the construction costs of a badly needed new Hospital.

Dunedin in particular will remember this.

But the most concerning news was announcement of a billion dollar deficit although it appears that some sleight of hand was used to achieve this.

From Rachel Thomas at the Post:

A $529 million pay equity sum for health workers that never arrived contributed to the deficit at Health NZ – Te Whatu Ora, the agency says.

The head of the nursing union at the heart of two of these claims is describing the revelation as an insult to those on the front line.

In a quarterly report released on Thursday, Health NZ shed light on how and why its finances deteriorated from a forecast surplus of almost $300m to an unaudited deficit of $934m by June 30 this year.

In the high-up summary of the 72-page report, chief executive Margie Apa said the deficit was partly due to one-off factors including write-offs to surplus Covid-19 stock ($193m), Holidays Act payments ($172m), cuts to Hauora Māori funding, higher than expected staffing costs and more outsourcing.

But buried on page 53, the April-June report calls out a payment that never came.

“In 2023/24, we expected to receive $529 million of funding to fully offset pay equity payments to allied health, midwifery and nursing staff. This would have contributed to Health NZ achieving a surplus of $583 million.

“Pay equity funding was not received during the year, resulting in the target surplus expectation reducing to $54 million. Health NZ did not achieve this revised target surplus.”

The payment for pay equity was delayed until September for some reason. But the delay allows the Government to suggest that the sector is in crisis and that funding cuts are necessary.

The adding of extra costs to the Dunedin Hospital project to make it appear to be unaffordable, the reckless allowance for a tax cut for Philip Morris and the fudging of health figures to suggest there is a crisis all point to gross mismanagement of Health at a time when it is under stress.

And the reason why is important to ascertain. It seems pretty clear this Government agrees with the maxim that you should never waste a good crisis.

Stand by and wait for the privatisation push …

10 comments on “National is stuffing up health ”

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  1. Macro 1
    8 October 2024 at 11:10 am

    In reply to the above, the PM seized another photo and media opportunity, and made the following announcement:

    "So Look! What I am saying to use is this! Our Govt is focused and working extremely hard on achieving our targets; and that is to deliver as much money as possible to those who don't need it, and by doing so, grow their economy, and get this country back on track to a depression."

  2. Mountain Tui 2
    8 October 2024 at 2:00 pm

    This government can only get away with lie after lie because of a weak media landscape.

    A pity given how evident it is that privatising increases avoidable deaths, increases costs for the state and people, and worsens health outcomes over the medium and long term.

    https://www.spi.ox.ac.uk/article/doctoral-researcher-ben-goodair-on-the-privitisation-of-the-nhs-and-avoidable-deaths-social

    https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/jun/29/nhs-privatisation-drive-linked-to-rise-in-avoidable-deaths-study-suggests

    https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpub/article/PIIS2468-2667(24)00003-3/fulltext

    • tc 2.1
      8 October 2024 at 2:22 pm

      Non existent media who reproduce whats said, no critique after or pulling them up on the outright lies during.

      Promotion of their talking points is the goal now. They really arent required to be there now just send the field crew as they do nothing now.

  3. Mountain Tui 3
    8 October 2024 at 6:29 pm

    I wrote a long rambling post about media one day – as I tried to work through what I felt about them.

    It boiled down to 2 things:

    1. Money / Resources

    2. Political pressure

    Those that are not explicit outlines of this NACT1 government (i.e. NZME are their allies) are held back by the need to earn corporate ad money

    And second, this government has not been shy to exert political pressure and 'threats' against the media e.g. Seymour telling TVNZ he might do a review of them in February and force them to pay dividends even though they were in deep financial trouble.

    What's clear here is corporatisation ie. capitalism doesn't work – public interest journalism needs to be at the fore.

    I do what I do because I cannot see someone else doing it for example. We need the people with the strength, and the reach to write for public interest – and not vested interests.

    TLDR: Agree with you

  4. PsyclingLeft.Always 4
    9 October 2024 at 9:54 am

    Onya Mickey Savage and Mountain Tui. You are both highlighting the low lit ..murk of NACT1's agenda. Always on, and to, the Point . For me a couple of beacons (well..no headswells, but true : ) amidst the general downslide of NZ.

    Anyway there was this recently..

    Health NZ wants to cut them? Or… Reti/Levy?

    Health NZ wants to cut four chief medical officer roles

    Health New Zealand (HNZ) wants to reduce the number of chief medical officers, from 18 to 14 nationwide, while also promising not to cut front-line medical roles.

    Those at the front say..

    The senior doctors' union says this will lead to a reduction in critical clinical leadership roles overseeing safe patient care in hospitals around the country.

    And HNZ (Reti/Levy again?)…

    HNZ pledged on Tuesday not to cut front-line medical roles amid the reset.

    Well..right. A question for Margie Yes, Lester Apa and dr Lester Levy…

    And Its a Yes. yes, yes. (Although..what does he actually definitively mean with that?)

    RNZ asked Te Whatu Ora chief executive Margie Apa and Commissioner Lester Levy if they could give confirm there would be no cuts of senior medical people in the near to medium term.

    "Yes, absolutely yes, definitively yes," Levy said.

    Senior medical roles were a focus, Apa said.

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/530203/health-nz-wants-to-cut-four-chief-medical-officer-roles

    So…I looked up what is a Chief Medical Officer..NZ. Found this job description. Its a PDF FYI…..

    And…definitely seems to require someone who would be an Essential.

    https://www.southernhealth.nz/sites/default/files/2021-08/Chief%20Medical%20Officer%20Position%20Description%2020210729.pdf

  5. georgecom 5
    9 October 2024 at 4:18 pm

    This may be of interest for some comment on there being too many nurses hired at Te Whatu ora One point made was the difference between the numbers of nurses/staff required for proper patient care and a budget set by the Government and Lester Levy. The budget is not reflecting need.

    • georgecom 5.1
      9 October 2024 at 7:15 pm

      also seems that $400 of the "deficit", at the risk of simplifying things too much, is because money sitting in a budget line earmarked for staff pay increases was taken away by the Nicola Willis and spent elsewhere and the debt left with Te Whatu Ora. So Te Whatu Ora staff are essentially paying for Casey Costellos tax cut to British American Tobacco and David Seymours charter school vanity project combined.

    • PsyclingLeft.Always 5.2
      9 October 2024 at 9:07 pm

      Hi, yea I like "Nurses Org hits back" . More of that needed. Tell those NACT1 POS the fight is being brought to them !

      Oh there was this today too. The Header is one thing, but within….

      One page out of 454 sheds light on Health New Zealand money woes

      "rising patient demand" Thats a bad thing ?

      On page five of the short aide-memoire at document dump page 234, the "discussion" turned to rising patient demand, and further cost controls being put in place.

      A heading said, 'Whilst the financial result is concerning, service volumes and safety are improving'.

      This was the dilemma.

      "Point 22" : Is that anything like …Catch 22 ?

      Strikingly, 'point 22' said a "positive" was that hospitals were getting more surgery and treatment done partly due to higher than expected patient demand.

      https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/530277/one-page-out-of-454-sheds-light-on-health-new-zealand-money-woes

      Prob needs more..analysis, But hey looks to me like the Health Staff have been doing their utmost.

      A NACT1 manufactured crisis….paraphrased : In order to save the village Health System it became necessary to…. privatise it.

      Stand Up. Fight Back !

      • Georgecom 5.2.1
        10 October 2024 at 9:24 am

        If this govt or any govt wants to stem the flow of people tbrough hospitals then better fund primary health. The PH sector estimates govt funding is around 15% less than what is actually needed. We have all seen the recent results of that across the country. Better funded PH will make a difference to the demands our public hospitals arw dealing with. Nicola Willis has underfunded both sectors. A capital gains tax needed now more than ever.

  6. PsyclingLeft.Always 6
    11 October 2024 at 9:27 am

    Dargaville Hospital again without a doctor most nights this week

    NACT1 Reti/Levy trying…but they cant suppress it.

    Dargaville Hospital has again been without a doctor most nights this week, a leaked staff memo reveals.

    The message, sent by management at Health NZ Te Tai Tokerau, warned staff there would be no doctor or nurse practitioner on duty overnight on Wednesday or the rest of the week.

    Who you gonna call? Well..theres TeleHealth? (a private business)

    The memo set out contingency plans such as the use of telehealth – a service provided by a private business, allowing nurses to talk to an off-site doctor by phone or video call – and a lowered threshold for transferring patients to Whangārei Hospital.

    Oh also, no Doctor….but an Advanced Paramedic !

    Management had also arranged for an advanced paramedic to be on the ward overnight on Wednesday and Thursday to support the nurses.

    They do have a plan..in worst case.

    An "escalation plan" was included in case any patients who had been stable during the day deteriorated overnight.

    dr Reti continues to deny. Nothing to see..here.

    Earlier this week the office of Heath Minister Shane Reti said closing Dargaville Hospital was not being considered, despite the difficulties finding medical staff.

    Any speculation about the ward shutting down was "utterly wrong", a spokeswoman said.

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/530439/dargaville-hospital-again-without-a-doctor-most-nights-this-week

    Privatisation? IMO NACT1 Reti, Levy et al; moving along.

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