Reti Shane: Oral Questions — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeReti Shane: Oral Questions — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 17 November 2015. Volume:710;Page:8023. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]4.Dr SHANE RETI (National—Whangarei) to the Minister of Health: Can he confirm that elective orthopaedic surgical discharges have increased by 34 percent from 18240 in 2008 to 24439 operations this year?Hon Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN (Minister of Health): Yes I can. The number of elective orthopaedic surgical discharges has increased by a third under this Government thanks in part to our $4.1 billion funding increase over the last 7 years. Orthopaedic surgeries cover things like hip and knee joint replacements which themselves have increased by 25 percent from 8400 to 10600. This increase in surgery is a key part of National’s plan to improve health services to patients and demonstrates our efforts to always do more.Dr Shane Reti: What other reports has he received about patient access to hip and knee joint replacements?Hon Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN: I received a report last week that stated that access to hip and knee joint replacements in our public hospitals is getting harder and that patients were having to wait in pain before reaching the threshold number of points required to receive surgery. Upon investigation it became clear these claims were unsubstantiated and wrong. The claims were based on the threshold score patients required for such surgery in 2013 and comparing that with the average score of patients above the threshold who received surgery in 2015. These two statistics are not the same. Disappointingly the member who made these claims was Mrs Annette King.Mr SPEAKER: Order! The last part will not be necessary. [Interruption] Order!Dr Shane Reti: What other reports has he received about the performance of the public health system?Hon Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN: I have received a range of incorrect reports this year that have followed a similar pattern including ones that stated that few GP clinics in Auckland were offering free visits to under-13s that $1.7 billion had been cut out of the health budget that signing the Trans-Pacific Partnership would cost the health budget $1 billion and kill New Zealanders and even about individual cases such as the Northland woman who had her home-care support hours cut and who turned out to be a mental health patient. All of these claims were totally wrong and they were all made by the same member Annette King. [Interruption]Mr SPEAKER: Order! [Interruption] The interjection from my right is certainly not helping the order of this House. [Interruption] Order! I did not hear the interjection that came from my right but I invite the member now to rise and ask her supplementary question.Hon Annette King: So will the Minister contact Mr Geoff Anderson and tell him that he is wrong when he says it is harder to get a knee replacement now than it was 4 years ago? Instead of mouthing just answer the question.Hon Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN: As I said in my previous answer if the member would like to supply Mr Anderson’s email address I am quite happy to get in touch with him. I seek leave to table an email from the Auckland District Health Board to my office explaining that its threshold score for patients to receive hip and knee surgery has remained unchanged since 2013.Document by leave laid on the Table of the House.Mr SPEAKER: Question No. 5—[Interruption] Order! Question No. 5 James Shaw—[Interruption] Order! The conversation across the House will now cease.