Maori Health Authority: More details sought
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Maori medical professionals and health advocates are mildly optimistic after the
announcement that tangata whenua will have their own health body with the power to decide what services to fund.
A new Maori Health Authority will be set up to have joint decision-making power with the new entity Health New Zealand which will replace all 20 district health boards (DHB).
A consensus on whether a new Maori Health Authority should be able to fund its own services could not be reached by the Health and Disability System Review.
The report s author Heather Simpson and two other panel members dissented from the majority of the panel and went against the recommendation of the Maori Expert Advisory Group that the authority should have commissioning powers.