Health cuts don’t heal

Health cuts don’t heal

Leaked Cabinet papers that show that Government has been advised to cut the health budget by around $200 million is ringing alarm bells throughout the nursing and midwifery community.

NZNO industrial adviser for the DHB sector, Lesley Harry says, “We can hardly believe what we are hearing. Health services are stretched to the limit already and many, many New Zealanders are already failing to get the health care they need, when they need it.”

“The advice the Government has been given is extremely short sighted – more cuts to health now will undoubtedly result in worse health outcomes and more expensive health care services needed down the track. The results of cuts now will take generations to fix.”

“Not only that, but it is completely unconscionable for the Government to expect that shortfalls will be absorbed by the goodwill of nurses, midwives and other health professionals. Our members are stressed and overworked now; I dread to think what will happen in our hospitals and community health services when another $200 million is cut from services and budgets.”

“The health budget is not finite; the Government could to decide to fund health properly if it wanted to. Sadly it seems its priorities lie elsewhere,” Ms Harry says.

ENDS

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