5. Question No. 5—HealthSAM UFFINDELL (National—Tauranga) to the Minister of HealthQuestion No. 5—Health5 SAM UFFINDELL (National—Tauranga) to the Minister of Health What progress has been made in lifting immunisation rates for New Zealanders particularly high-needs communities?Hon Dr SHANE RETI (Minister of Health): In December the Government announced an investment of $50 million over two years for Māori health providers to help lift immunisation rates particularly amongst high-needs communities children and older people who we know have especially poor vaccine coverage. Already we're learning that this programme is delivering positive results. Preliminary data shows that for the lead provider organisation its teams delivered 33330 vaccinations up to 30 June 2024. That's more than three times their initial target of 10000 vaccinations. This is exactly the kind of investment in front-line services—managed and delivered locally—which we need more of to help deliver on the targets we have set to get our health system back on track.Sam Uffindell: How has the immunisation rate changed over the preceding decade particularly for our most high-needs communities?Hon Dr SHANE RETI: It is a challenging state we're in with regard to immunisation rates. Immunisation is one of the most important ways to protect New Zealanders against diseases such as influenza whooping cough and measles. However since 2017 total immunisation rates for all children at 24 months have dropped from around 93 percent to 81 percent at the end of last year. That is a decrease of roughly 12 percent. Māori rates have dropped by around 26 percent from 2017. We need to do better. Over the years we've seen a lot of talk about supporting vulnerable communities which hasn't clearly-resulted in better outcomes. This Government will change that because we're committed to doing better for all New Zealanders.Sam Uffindell: Why did the Government prioritise this investment?Hon Dr SHANE RETI: As I said earlier immunisation is one of the most important ways to protect New Zealanders against preventable diseases so investment in immunisation will always be a top priority for this Government. This investment reinforces our commitment to get immunisation resources and funding as close to the front line as possible. Improving vaccination rates will also contribute to a range of health targets including helping reduce emergency department wait times by preventing New Zealanders from becoming seriously ill. Sam Uffindell: What role do targets have in improving health outcomes for New Zealanders? Hon Dr SHANE RETI: We want the health system to do better across the board. In recent years immunisation rates for children have dropped people are facing long delays accessing cancer treatment emergency department wait times have risen as have wait times for first specialist assessments and elective treatment. Performance against these has been well below acceptable for some time. That's why we have put health targets back at the forefront of our decision making. We believe that targets help direct attention and resources to where they are most needed. Targets also provide the accountability and transparency that the system needs to ensure it is delivering timely access to quality healthcare because that is what New Zealanders need.