An important health change

Simeon Brown announced:

From 1 July, decision-making within Health New Zealand will shift closer to patients, communities, and hospitals, ensuring decisions are made in the right place at the right time so Kiwis get better access to care, Health Minister Simeon Brown says.

Health New Zealand regions and districts will receive delegated decision making over workforce decisions, budgets, and service delivery.

It is important to remember that the Heather Simpson review did not recommend trying to merge 20 DHBs together in 18 months into one body. She sensibly recommended reducing the number. The merger has basically been a disaster. It would be almost impossible to reverse it, but delegating more authority closer to patients is a good step.