June 22, 2020
Maori health authority a toothless tiger


Te Rōpū Whakakaupapa Urutā, the group of Māori health professions that came together around the COVID crisis, has given the thumbs down to a proposed Māori health authority.
Co-leader Professor Papaarangi Reid says the authority as recommended in the Health and Disability Services Review will be a toothless tiger with limited funding, limited power and limited ability to affect changes across the wider health system.
She says a Māori health authority needs to have powers to direct, rather than advise, the Minister and the health system in decisions for Māori health.
Te Rōpū Whakakaupapa Urutā also believes health sector agencies should be required to build their capability to engage meaningfully with Māori so that they act fairly as a Treaty partner.
The Government also needs to prioritise Māori and Pacific people’s health in all of the re-start activities to do with health services for the next 18 months of the COVID-19 recovery.
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