Media release from Labour Party Health spokesperson Grant Robertson

The release of a Ministry of Health report on the cost of cancer treatment shows again why the focus of health spending must be on prevention, Labour's Health spokesperson Grant Robertson says.

"The report points out that as a country we are spending half a billion dollars a year on cancer treatment, and that cost is forecast to increase by hundreds of millions of dollars a year over the next decade.

"If we are to keep New Zealanders healthy and keep health spending sustainable, we have got to focus on prevention," Grant Robertson said

"We know that one-third of cancers are preventable. Investing resources in stopping people from getting cancer through preventive programmes that target things such as smoking, alcohol abuse and poor diet, reduces the need for expensive treatment later on.

"Prevention should be a priority. Sadly the current Government has cut hundreds of millions of dollars from valuable public health programmes were aimed at exactly that.

"We also need to ensure that resources are provided for screening programmes where they are found to be safe and reliable. While it is great news that the bowel cancer screening pilot has started, the emphasis now should be on rolling it out nationwide."

"The report stresses again that decisions about the availability of treatments need to be left to the best medical evidence of success, and not meddling by politicians. 

"As Dalton Kelly, the Chief Executive of the Cancer Society, has highlighted the funding of Herceptin, made after political intervention by the National Government despite a lack of evidence to prove its worth, has been hugely costly."

"Prevention is at the core of Labour's health policy. 

"Giving people the information, support and resources to make healthy living choices will do more than anything else to keep New Zealanders healthy. 

"By reducing the need for expensive treatments later on, it is also a smart investment,"  Grant Robertson said.