By RNZ Three weeks into his new role as commissioner of Health New Zealand, Dr Lester Levy says the finances are worse than he thought. Levy was tasked with solving an estimated $1.4 billion overspend, and fixing a system many have described as broken, when he replaced the board at the end of May.
As well as a massive budget blowout, Te Whatu Ora is facing a shortage of clinicians, overworked and burnt out staff, long waiting lists, and provinces and regions without adequate cover and having to resort to telehealth services. Levy told Nine to Noon some months the agency’s deficit went beyond the estimated $130 million..