Health

Other climate change-related investments to be made by CERF under Budget 2022 include forestry and agriculture sector investments.

Forestry sector climate investments: „ $91 million to reduce the use of coal and other carbon-intensive fuels and materials by increasing woody biomass availability, and „ $145 million to create large-scale native forests as carbon sinks, to offset emissions in other sectors where abatement is difficult.

Agricultural sector climate investments: „ $339 million of funding for a “Centre for Climate Action in Agriculture” to support innovation and research to reduce emissions, and „ $6 million for the implementation of an agricultural emissions pricing scheme, based on the outcomes of the

Primary Sector Climate Action Partnership/He Waka Eke Noa.

Ministerial statement

“ …we need to change the way we provide funding for health. In recent years, District Health Boards have consistently run deficits, with funding unable to meet growing demand and address historic cost pressures.

Relying on the annual Budget cycle for funding has made it difficult to plan for future investments and address long-term challenges in the health system.

To address this, we are introducing a new multi-year funding model for health, beginning with two years of funding before eventually moving toward a three-year funding cycle from Budget 2024.”

Editorial comment

Budget 2022 provides what the Finance Minister describes as “the largest investment ever in our health system” with $11.1 billion total operating and $1.3 billion capital funding.

Pharmac receives an injection of $191 million extra over the next 2 years, taking its total funding to $1.2 billion and a focus on better cancer treatments.

Other items earmarked for spending include: „ improved access to mental health and addiction services ($202 million) „ hospitals and health infrastructure ($1.3 billion)