Photo: RNZ / Angus Dreaver
Health Minister Shane Reti has announced he is extending existing Hauora Māori and Budget 2022 contracts for a further year, which he says will provide continuity and certainty.
The move means contracts set up under the Māori Health Authority, and health contracts from Budget 2022 that are still continuing, have their funding confirmed for another year, through until July 2025.
Dr Reti on Wednesday afternoon said he had met with the Iwi-Māori Partnership Boards (IMPB) - set up as part of Labour's health reforms - in Christchurch that morning.
The coalition's scrapping of Te Aka Whai Ora, the Māori Health Authority also set up under those reforms, retained the IMPBs which had reported to the authority as well as the Hauora Māori Advisory Committee to continue to advise the minister on Māori health.
At Parliament later, he told reporters the plan was to power up the boards so they could directly commission future contracts and monitor progress - as Te Aka Whai Ora had been set up to do.
"My ambitions are for Iwi-Māori Partnership Boards to have commissioning privileges to be able to guide and steer those contracts.
"They will have decision-making for their local area, their local hapū. They'll define their health needs analysis and then they'll ... help create and describe how Māori providers will align with that health needs analysis, and then monitoring and reporting."
But there was more to be done before then.
"IMPBs aren't ready at this point to have more influence in those contracts," he said.
He said he still believed there were parts of the Māori Health Authority that were waste, pointing to jobs he said were in some cases taken by consultants.
"It looks like there may be $10m to $20m to $30m that might otherwise be available for other projects," he said.
In an earlier statement, he said his meeting with the IMPBs had left him "encouraged by the passion and dedication the IMPB leaders have to support Māori health outcomes, and outcomes for all New Zealanders."
"Today's discussion with the leaders had a specific focus on key areas such as the impact of the recent legislative changes, and role of the Hauora Māori Advisory Committee which I reinforced will be retained and powered up."
"I see the committee as a key independent Māori advisor to me, as the minister of Health. This committee will play a leading role in overseeing system-wide performance, providing insights and monitoring to improve how the system improves Māori health outcomes.
"However, as the ones closer to homes and hapori and with specific legislative functions, IMPBs also have a big role - they're the ones best positioned to understand and represent the specific needs of their communities."
He said given the breathing space provided by the extension of the contracts, he expected the IMPBs to prepare to be ready for the 2025/26 financial year.