45,000 Kiwis sent back to their GPs
new-zealand-labour-party
Mon Jul 25 2016 12:00:00 GMT+1200 (New Zealand Standard Time)
45,000 Kiwis sent back to their GPs
Monday, 25 July 2016, 9:36 am
Press Release: New Zealand Labour Party
Annette King
MP for Rongotai
Health Spokesperson
24 July 2016
45,000 Kiwis sent back to their GPs
Last year nearly 45,000 Kiwis were sent back to their GPs without getting to see specialists they were referred to, says Labour’s Health spokesperson Annette King.
“This is a shocking figure and underlines how far the cut of $1.7 billion dollars has hurt health.
“Overall specialist refusals have increased over the 2014 -15 year with the biggest increases in refusals by the Waikato and Waitemata District Health Boards.
“In Waitemata over 1500 people more than the year before were refused, while in the Waikato the number of refusals jumped by nearly 500 patients.
“Hundreds more patients were also turned away in Northland.
“This means that people who should be productive members of their community are on the scrapheap. They are being denied care because our hospitals are not being funded to meet demand.
“New figures show that twelve out of our twenty DHBs are getting less money out of the Budget once they have made the adjustment for inflation and population growth.
“The Minister has to fund health properly. At the moment thousands of New Zealanders are being ignored when it comes to essential elective surgery,” says Annette King.
Contact: Annette King 021 270 9170
Number of patients returned to a GP after an FSA refusal
2014
2015
Auckland
2740
2696
Bay of Plenty
4313
4718
Capital & Coast
4755
4864
Counties Manukau
970
507
Hawke's Bay
1087
1308
Hutt Valley
2504
1,999
Lakes
47
82
MidCentral
1612
1693
Nelson-Marlborough
813
1271
Northland
4036
4475
South Canterbury*
N/A
N/A
Southern
2589
2992
Tairawhiti
380
481
Taranaki
1537
1343
Waikato
2436
2920
Wairarapa
852
884
Waitemata
4415
6005
Whanganui
1218
1335
West Coast
432
576
Total
41791
44780
ends
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