Yang Jian: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers Personal Explanation—Comments Made at Environmental Defence Society Conference 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Yang Jian: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers Personal Explanation—Comments Made at Environmental Defence Society Conference 
[Sitting date: 25 July 2012. Volume:682;Page:3893. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
8. 
Dr JIAN YANG (National) 
 to the  
Minister of Health 
: What progress has been made in providing improved child health services? 
Hon TONY RYALL (Minister of Health) 
: 
 The Government has made strong progress in improving health services for children. Immunisation is now at a record level of 93 percent for 2-year-olds. There are free doctors’ visits for children under 6 day and night 7 days a week and a $24 million programme to address rheumatic fever and we have rescued the B4 School checks programme which has seen almost 140000 children being given free health and development checks before they start school. The Government’s policies are not so much about closing the gaps as lifting for all especially those most in need and this is well demonstrated by the immunisation success story. While the immunisation rate for our children has lifted the increase in the immunisation rate for Maori has lifted much greater from 73 percent to 92 percent and for children of Pacific Island ethnicity from 80 percent to an unprecedented 97 percent. In terms of income—this is very interesting—the poorest income groups have exactly the same immunisation rate as the wealthiest groups: 94 percent. 
Dr Jian Yang 
: What progress has been made with the new programme to reduce rheumatic fever a Third World disease particularly prevalent in Maori and Pacific Island communities? 
Hon TONY RYALL 
: I think the first point I need to make is that rheumatic fever can develop into a life-threatening heart disease and have the patient on 10 years of monthly penicillin injections. But this very serious Third World disease can be prevented and it is one of the National-led Government’s key result areas to reduce the incidence of rheumatic fever by two-thirds by 2017. What I can announce today is that the largest initiative ever in South Auckland to deal with rheumatic fever will be launched on Friday. It is going to be opening at the Rongomai School in Otara which will be the first of 18 school-based clinics in South Auckland. Clinics will open in Manurewa Mangere and Papakura schools. The clinics will check throats and skin infections provide antibiotics and provide access to services for healthy housing and injury prevention—a great achievement for New Zealand. 
Barbara Stewart 
: What action is he taking to ensure that all rural areas including Invercargill and Lumsden have access to free after-hours urgent health-care for children under 6? 
Hon TONY RYALL 
: As the member will know the scheme is not compulsory and the district health boards are negotiating that with various localities. We are currently at just over 90 percent of the country providing that access. That is a tremendous achievement for free after-hours health-care for under-sixes and I look to progress in the southern region with those particular communities in the next while.