Senior doctors at public hospitals in New Zealand have narrowly voted against requesting Te Whatu Ora to pay for their private health insurance. The proposal received over 40% support from doctors, but failed to secure the majority needed to pass.
The demand for private health insurance has been increasing in New Zealand due to the growing struggles faced by public hospitals. Recently, a Bay of Plenty iwi service bought private health insurance for its employees, stating that it felt it had no other choice.
The close vote reflects the frustration among members of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists. Sarah Dalton, the association’s executive director, said that some members are worried about accessing healthcare through the public system. However, the proposal failed partly because it contradicts the union’s mission to advocate for quality public healthcare for all.
Dalton also noted that many senior doctors and dentists, given their high salaries, are capable of affording private health insurance themselves. The proposal was not something the association was considering, but was brought up by the members during an annual meeting in late 2023 as a way to express their frustration with Te Whatu Ora as an employer.
Another issue highlighted was the high toll that working in healthcare takes on individuals, leading to fatigue and burnout. Dalton said the association needs to focus more on health and wellbeing issues.
The New Zealand Nurses Organisation mentioned that its members have discussed private health insurance, but it has never been proposed as a claim. The Private Surgical Hospitals Association acknowledged that employer schemes have driven insurance policy growth in recent years, but clarified that private surgical hospitals do not employ doctors, so their model differs from public hospitals. The association does not have a collective stance on offering private health insurance and does not collect data on it.
