It's time for the Cook Islands to increase its health spending, particularly on the outer islands, a former health minister says.
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Nandi Glassie has been conducting PhD research into the health and economic reforms of the 1990s and their effects.
He said money spent on health as a percentage of GDP had fallen each year since 2012.
Mr Glassie was the health minister for most of those years of decline.
His call didn't amount to hypocrisy, however, because the health system was still in good shape, he said.
While some spending had to be reined in, there was now a healthy surplus to allow for more, he said
"If you have so many projects you have to prioritise which is the most immediate need. We know we need to put more money into health but through our discussions it's really just taking one step at a time.
"Basically what I'm saying is that even though we are just looking at the budget, we can justify that the government has been very positive and supportive in some areas of health."