Politicians clash over best way to fix health system

Labour's Ayesha Verrall and National's Simeon Brown. Photo: RNZ

Labour and National both think they know how to fix the health system.

Everyone agrees there's work to be done, but on Wednesday in Parliament's Health Select Committee, politicians clashed over the details - with the government's Budget under the microscope for scrutiny week.

Both sides of the aisle agreed the biggest problem was access.

Health Minister Simeon Brown told the committee: "The number one issue for patients right now is accessing a doctor - being able to get an appointment."

And across the health sector, doctors and health economists alike have told RNZ the best bang for buck would come from investing in primary care, to keep people well and out of overcrowded hospitals and busy specialist services.

The government is currently in talks with general practitioners about a new capitation model - that is, how funding is allocated to GPs based on population demographics.

One offer was retracted last week, after concern it left some practices, particularly rural ones, worse off, and another agreement was now under consideration.

Brown said the new agreement should be in place by the start of the new financial year in July, and in its current form, it would increase funding across the board for GPs and freeze fees for the next year, to keep rising costs off patients.

Ayesha Verrall, Labour's health spokesperson and a former health minister, put to Brown that this served only to lock in already expensive GP fees, and did nothing for the 650,000 people each year who, according to Labour, can't afford to see a doctor.

By comparison, Labour has promised three free GP visits and as many free maternity scans as medically necessary, through a new Medicard.

But Brown criticised that plan for failing to target assistance where it was most needed.

"If you're trying to suggest that people earning around $300,000 like myself and Chris Hipkins should get free GP visits, that is an untargeted policy" which would "clog up the access to GPs", he said.

The current government was aiming to increase the GP workforce through its new Waikato medical school, which would bring the country's total number of medical schools to three, alongside Auckland and Otago.

Funding for aged care had also been given a boost, which would increase capacity by freeing up hospital beds.

"There's no single silver bullet to solving this challenge, which some people think there is," Brown said.

"There is no simple single solution, if there was, it would be found by now."

Paula Lorgelly, a professor of health ec