6. Question No. 6—HealthHon MICHAEL WOODHOUSE (National) to the Minister of HealthQuestion No. 6—Health6. Hon MICHAEL WOODHOUSE (National) to the Minister of Health: Does he stand by all of his statements and actions around Vote Health in Budget 2019?Hon Dr DAVID CLARK (Minister of Health): Yes and in particular I stand by my statement that with the Wellbeing Budget this Government is taking mental health seriously and at the same time investing $1.7 billion in hospitals and other health facilities.Hon Michael Woodhouse: Well isn't it true that in order to fund his Government's mental health initiatives large parts of Vote Health have been neglected and the best example of that is the effective decrease in Pharmac funding?Hon Dr DAVID CLARK: No.Hon Michael Woodhouse: Well how can he stand by that statement and that a 1.1 percent funding increase for Pharmac is sufficient when the 1.8 percent increase in population in the last 12 months means Pharmac funding has materially dropped on a per capita basis?Hon Dr DAVID CLARK: The Pharmac model enables more people to have more medicines every year. In the last financial year 331000 more patients got access to medicines because of the Pharmac model. There were 13 new drugs approved and 39 medicine classes had broadened access. This year there will be more people that get access to more medicines again. We invested $40 million as a part of a health budget that invested $1 billion a year in health to address the neglect of nine long years of health underfunding by that former Government.Hon Michael Woodhouse: Given that answer why did he not correct his answer to oral questions on Wednesday last week when he said I do stand by the statement that last year over 100000 New Zealanders gained further access to medicines" and isn't the discrepancy just because he's not very good with numbers?Hon Dr DAVID CLARK: Because over 100000 people did get access to medicines. I would like to give the member a short lesson in that the number 331000 is more than 100000.Hon Simon Bridges: Has he just changed the number from 100000 to 330000 and does that show he's just making it up as he goes along?SPEAKER: Order! Order! We had that statement in the House last week and it resulted in someone withdrawing and apologising. The member will withdraw and apologise.Hon Simon Bridges: I withdraw and apologise.Hon Michael Woodhouse: Does he agree with his Director-General of Health who described his own ministry's and Treasury's projected district health board (DHB) deficits of $390 million in Budget 2019 as "speculation" and is that what Budget 2019 has become?Hon Dr DAVID CLARK: Budget 2019 the Wellbeing Budget invests $1.9 billion in mental health because that is what New Zealanders are concerned about. That Budget invests heavily across a range of areas in health. It addresses underfunding in the DHB sector that's gone on for years and years and years with $2.8 billion going into DHBs this time round. Of course we can't address nine years of underfunding in one or two Budgets but we can make a good start.Hon Michael Woodhouse: When is he going to make that good start?Hon Dr DAVID CLARK: We've already made it. There's good news for that member because once again it's a record Budget. Last year we put more money in than had been put in for a decade and this year we topped it—again more money than in a decade. They neglected health for nine long years—$2.3 billion in underfunding. We are addressing that: 1300 more nurses 440 more doctors and over 300 more allied health workers. We have been growing our public health system unlike that lot who were prepared to let it shrivel and die."