Media release from Labour health spokesperson Ruth Dyson

On the day Bill English told New Zealanders he was cutting low value programmes, newspaper headlines read 'cuts to hit terminally ill', Labour health spokesperson Ruth Dyson says.

"A conservative stock-take of health services undertaken by Labour showed more than 50 frontline health services have been cut since National came to office."

"Home help for elderly, services for the terminally ill, mental health services and diabetes services are amongst the services that have been cut back. Bill English and Tony Ryall would have you believe that these services are 'low value' and this is a disgrace.

"Questions must now be asked about Minister of Health Tony Ryall's blatant misleading of the public. The Minister has made enormous claims about cutting back room services and saving more than $700 million all to be invested in frontline health services.  He made that claim over six months ago so surely we would be seeing $100 million in additional money by now. But instead all we have seen is cuts.

"How is the savings programme going Mr Ryall? The 3500 elderly in Otago and Southland who are losing their home support would certainly like to know how that savings programme for investment in frontline services going.

"The increase in frontline services Mr Ryall loves to point to is elective services. The only problem for Mr Ryall is that the increases began under Labour because of a massive hospital building programme that included more than 20 new theatres and an investment in nursing and medical personnel including a 20% pay jolt to hospital-based nurses in 2004.

"Under National medical personnel are warning of an exodus to Australia.
"It's amazing Mr Ryall takes credit for the electives increase, but says the 3500 people in Southland and Otago losing services and the more than 1500 in Canterbury and Wellington who have lost services are not his concern they are just operational decisions.

"Tony Ryall has repeatedly misled the public and now elderly and the terminally ill are bearing the brunt of his decision to cut patient services.

"Take some responsibility Minister; you allowed elderly cancer and arthritis suffers to lose their home help. No-one else is responsible," Ruth Dyson says