Day 102 - Scoop - Carers NZ: Govt Needs To Fund Pay Equity For Care And Support Workers Now!

Carers NZ: Govt Needs To Fund Pay Equity For Care And Support Workers Now!

Sunday, 30 June 2024, 3:44 pm

Press Release: Public Service Association

Carers NZ is calling on Health Minister Shane Reti to fully fund a fair pay equity settlement for 65,000 care and support workers.

Carers NZ is the national peak body representing more than one million New Zealanders who care for friends and family who are frail, unwell or who have health conditions or disabilities.

A strong paid support workforce is essential. Without it, more pressures fall on already stressed family carers, says Carers NZ CEO Laurie Hilsgen.

Hilsgen is speaking out ahead of National Day of Action for Pay Equity rallies to be held around the country tomorrow (Monday 1 July, details below).

She says family caregiving, like the work of paid care and support workers, has been historically undervalued because it is work carried out predominantly by women.

"The care and support sector is heavily reliant on these undervalued workers who look after our loved ones - older people, disabled whānau, people experiencing mental health or addiction, and those recovering from illness or injury.

"It’s time the value of their work was fairly recognised in the pay equity settlement that has been in train for two years.

"It’s been proven that care and support workers are being paid less than their skills, experience, and level of responsibility warrant. All that is required to fix this inequality is for the Government to set aside funding from their Budget contingency."

Without a settlement, low pay and lack of recognition will see more workers leave a sector that is already struggling, making it harder for tens of thousands of New Zealanders to receive the care and support they need, placing even more pressure on over-burdened family carers.

Hilsgen says the wellbeing of family caregivers, whose mainly unpaid work has an annual economic benefit of $17.6 billion, is the lowest in Carers NZ’s 30-year history.

"During the pandemic they did more than ever, with less support than ever. Services were disrupted and there is an ongoing shortage of support workers. Family carers are exhausted - we need a strong support workforce that is fairly paid.

"I urge everyone who can to attend a rally in support of fixing a situation that affects hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders - those who need care and members of their family whānau and aiga."

Media contact: Laurie Hilsgen, Carers NZ CEO, 021 702 922 or info@carers.net.nz

Rally details:

Nationwide rallies Monday 1 July 2024

The rallies have been organised by the three care and support unions, E tū, PSA, and NZNO.

• Auckland: 2pm at Victoria Park, Auckland CBD.

• Hamilton: 1:30pm meet at PSA office - 489 Anglesea street.

• New Plymouth: 3pm at the new E tū office: 139 Powderham street, New Plymouth Central.

• Palmerston North: 12pm at The Square/Te Marae o Hine (next to The Verdict cafe).

• Wellington: 1:30pm at Heretaunga Boating Club, 138 The Esplanade, Petone.

• Nelson: 1:30pm meet at Nelson City Council - 110 Trafalgar Street.

• Christchurch: 1:30pm at Hornby Club, 17 Carmen Road, Hornby.

• Timaru: 1:30pm - corner of Wai-Iti Road and Evans Street.

• Dunedin: 12pm outside Median Mall, 285 George Street.

• Invercargill: 1:45pm meet at E tū office, 33 Don street.

Last Updated 02/07/2024

RESOURCES

• https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/GE2406/S00141/carers-nz-govt-needs-to-fund-pay-equity-for-care-and-support-workers-now.htm

• Carers NZ

• E tū

• PSA

• NZNO

Day 98 - Scoop - Rare Disorder Patients Desperate To Know If Their Medicines Will Be Funded In New Pharmac Funding Allocation

Rare Disorder Patients Desperate To Know If Their Medicines Will Be Funded In New Pharmac Funding Allocation

Press Release: Rare Disorders NZ

Scoop: 4:36pm, 25 June 2024

Rare Disorders NZ welcomes the announcement that more funding has been allocated to Pharmac’s medicines purchasing budget but is deeply frustrated that there is a lack of clarity around what the additional 28 medicines to be funded will be.

On Monday afternoon the Government announced it will be boosting Pharmac’s budget by an additional $604 million over four years in an effort to get the cancer medicines promised by National pre-election funded.

“While we always welcome any increase to Pharmac’s medicines budget and we are thrilled for the clarity it brings to cancer patients who have been waiting for this news, rare disorder patients who are also waiting for medicines on the Options for Investment list are desperate to know if their medicines are included in the 28 ‘other medicines’ that the additional funding will cover,” says Chris Higgins, Chief Executive of Rare Disorders NZ.

“Pharmac are currently unable to provide any clarification, despite the Government announcement being quite clear about how many medicines the new funding will cover and how many people will benefit. At the very least rare patients deserve to know whether they should continue to hold out hope,” continues Higgins.

There are currently 13 medicines for rare disorders (excluding rare cancers) on Pharmac’s Options for Investment list. These medicines would be life-changing for the patients waiting for them.

“Patients waiting for medicines on the OFI list have long been told the only thing standing in the way of accessing their medicine is funding. They have been patiently waiting while becoming increasingly unwell and disabled and facing the prospect of avoidable early death. It is unbearable for them to potentially be so close to access yet be told to continue to wait with the possibility the result will not be in their favour,” says Higgins.

“New Zealand’s track record for investing in medicines is appalling, so this additional funding for Pharmac is fantastic and long overdue, but the whole process to get this far has been an absolute shambles. It has and continues to be incredibly insensitive to those dependent on these decisions. I hope the Government in future will think more carefully about how they make these announcements and the importance of clarity.”

New Zealand sits at the bottom of the OECD for access to modern medicines. Currently, OECD countries invest on average 1.4% of GDP on medicines. New Zealand invests only 0.4% of GDP.

“The best way forward in our view is for the Government to set itself on a funding trajectory which will see medicines available to New Zealanders at at least the OECD average, beginning with clearing the Options for Investment list,” says Higgins.

About Rare Disorders NZ

Rare Disorders NZ is the only national organisation supporting all New Zealanders who live with a rare condition, and the people who care for them. Rare Disorders NZ offers a central starting point for patients and families affected by rare disorders, and helps families, patients and healthcare providers find essential information and support groups.

Last Updated 

RESOURCES

• https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/GE2406/S00125/rare-disorder-patients-desperate-to-know-if-their-medicines-will-be-funded-in-new-pharmac-funding-allocation.htm

• Rare Disorders NZ

Day 97 - The Press - ‘I have never felt as disabled in my life’: Disabled community to rally against funding changes

‘I have never felt as disabled in my life’: Disabled community to rally against funding changes

By: Mariné Lourens

The Press: 24/06/2024

Christchurch resident Nevé Billing has had major vision impairment since she was 5 years old.

Photo SUPPLIED

Christchurch resident Nevé Billing, 26, has had major vision impairment since she was 5 years old.

She is legally blind due to damaged optic nerves, but has never let her disability hold her back. She recently finished a business degree and is working part-time jobs while she looks for a full-time role.

Because of her vision impairment, Billing is highly dependent on Uber and other taxi services to get where she needs to go.

However, after Whaikaha, the Ministry of Disabled People, without warning announced cuts to disability services in March, she is no longer able to use her funding for transportation.

A protest was held in Christchurch in March this year after the announcement by the Ministry of Disabled people about the changes to its funding.

“I have never felt as disabled in my life,” Billing said.

“I like living independently and I don’t like relying on people, so if I can’t get a ride with someone else, I am just trapped at home.”

Whaikaha earlier announced it was changing purchasing rules for disabled people and their carers, limiting what disabled people can buy with their funding.

Since then the ministry has provided clarifications on the rules, including that ride and driver services can be used only “to access services or engage with the community, where this is a reasonable and cost-effective option”.

Billing said she didn’t think the people making the funding decisions realised how much disabled people relied on the funding to support them in ways they needed to be supported.

She said she had been dealing with visual impairment for most of her life and had always found “workarounds”, such as using her disability funding to get around independently.

“Now that I don’t have that anymore, it has made me feel extremely isolated and like I’ve lost my freedom and independence.”

Billing will join other Cantabrians with disabilities and supporters at a Disability Leadership Canterbury rally in Christchurch on Monday to protest against the funding changes and what she sees as marginalisation of the disabled community.

“The rally is to show that we are not going to just sit back and take this. They need to relook at the decisions that have been made around the purchasing guidelines.”

She said she couldn’t see any issue with the way the funding was structured before, and believed the changes were simply a way to make it more difficult for disabled people to access funding support.

“I don’t see why every disabled person can’t use the money that has been allocated to them for the things they know they need.”

Last Updated 25/06/2024

RESOURCES

• https://www.thepress.co.nz/nz-news/350320442/i-have-never-felt-disabled-my-life-disabled-community-rally-against-funding