Associate Health Minister David Seymour says Pharmac should ignore ethnic or genetic difference in its drug buying activities.
Mr Seymour has sent the agency a new letter of expectation excluding the Treaty of Waitangi reference contained in previous letters.
He says he’s a strong believer in the treaty as a founding document, quest questions its relevance to the work Pharmac does.
“Quite simply if embossing the principles of the treaty means we are going to make sure every New Zealander is treated equally in accordance with the needs they have, then ka pai. If it means some people will be treated differently based on their ancestry, then actually we don’t think there is a place for that in the mahi or the work Pharmac has to do,” Mr Seymour says.
Te Pāti Māori has called for Mr Seymour’s resignation over the letter.
