New Zealand's $164M health blitz: 24/7 urgent care aims to reach 98 percent of Kiwis within an hour

New Zealanders, especially those in rural and remote areas, face daunting challenges in accessing timely medical care when illness strikes them.

Associate Health Minister Matt Doocey said, “Access to healthcare is one of the biggest concerns for people living in rural and remote communities.

Recognizing this critical gap, Budget 2025 introduces a substantial investment to bring urgent healthcare services closer to home for communities nationwide.


New Zealand's Budget 2025 allocates $164 million over four years to expand urgent and after-hours care services nationwide. This investment aims to ensure that 98 percent of New Zealanders can access in-person urgent care within an hour's drive from their homes, addressing disparities in healthcare availability, especially in rural and remote areas.

The Counties Manukau clinic will be the first cab off the rank, with a service likely to open before the end of the year.

Key Developments:

• New 24/7 Urgent Care Clinics: Facilities are planned for Counties Manukau and Dunedin by late 2025, Tauranga by mid-2026, and Whangārei and Palmerston North by mid-2027.
  
• Daytime Urgent Care Services: Lower Hutt is set to receive enhanced services by late 2025, with Invercargill and Timaru following in 2026.
  
• Rural and Remote Access: Improved services, including better access to diagnostics, urgent medicines, and 24/7 on-call clinical support, are planned for areas such as Alexandra, Ashburton, Balclutha, Golden Bay, Gore, and Ōamaru.
  

Health Minister Simeon Brown emphasized the importance of this initiative: "Strengthening urgent and after-hours care is an important part of our Government’s plan to ensure all New Zealanders have access to timely, quality healthcare."

Associate Health Minister Matt Doocey highlighted the benefits for rural communities, stating that the investment will bring healthcare closer to home for more people, ensuring that 98 percent of Kiwis will be able to access these services within an hour's drive of their home.

This funding is in addition to the previous Budget's cost-pressure allocations, which included a cumulative $16.68 billion over the next three Budgets to fund cost pressures in the health sector.