Minister of Health (New Zealand) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Minister of Health of New Zealand
Flag of New Zealand
Coat of arms of New Zealand
Incumbent Shane Reti since 27 November 2023
Ministry of Health
Style	The Honourable
Member of	Cabinet of New Zealand Executive Council
Reports to	Prime Minister of New Zealand
Appointer	Governor-General of New Zealand
Term length	At His Majesty's pleasure
Formation	8 November 1900
First holder	Sir Joseph Ward
Salary	$288,900
Website	www.beehive.govt.nz

The Minister of Health is a very important job in the New Zealand Government. This person is in charge of making sure New Zealanders have good healthcare. They oversee the New Zealand Ministry of Health and Te Whatu Ora—Health New Zealand.

The person currently holding this role is Shane Reti. He is a Member of Parliament (MP) for the National Party.

History of the Health Minister Role

How the Role Began

The first person to be in charge of public health was appointed in 1900. Back then, the job was called the "Minister of Public Health." This happened when Richard Seddon was the Prime Minister.

The word "Public" was later removed from the title. This change happened on June 27, 1923. Sir Māui Pōmare was the first person to be called simply "Minister of Health."

Changes to the Health System

In the 1980s, big changes happened in New Zealand's health system. The Department of Health used to be in charge of both providing and paying for healthcare. These jobs were then given to other groups.

• Crown Health Enterprises: These groups were set up to provide healthcare. They were like early versions of today's District Health Boards.
• Health Funding Authority: This group was created to manage the money for healthcare.

Because of these changes, the Department of Health only focused on making health policies. It was then renamed the Ministry of Health. For a while, there was even a separate minister just for the Crown Health Enterprises. This person was not always the same as the Minister of Health.

Later on, more changes were made. The Health Funding Authority became part of the Ministry of Health again. Also, the modern District Health Boards became a key responsibility of the Minister of Health. Even though they are not part of the Ministry, the Minister oversees them.

In July 2022, a new law called the Pae Ora (Healthy Futures) Act 2022 was passed. This law made even bigger changes. All the District Health Boards were closed down. Now, healthcare services and funding are managed centrally by Health New Zealand.

List of Health Ministers

Key

  Liberal   Reform   United   Labour   National

No.		Name	Portrait	Term of Office		Prime Minister
	1	Joseph Ward		8 November 1900	6 August 1906		Seddon
							Hall-Jones
	2	George Fowlds		6 August 1906	6 January 1909		Ward
	3	David Buddo		6 January 1909	28 March 1912
	4	George Warren Russell		28 March 1912	10 July 1912		Mackenzie
	5	Heaton Rhodes		10 July 1912	12 August 1915		Massey
	(4)	George Warren Russell		12 August 1915	25 August 1919
	6	Francis Bell		4 September 1919	3 April 1920
	7	James Parr		3 April 1920	7 June 1923
	8	Maui Pomare		7 June 1923	18 January 1926
							Bell
							Coates
	9	Alexander Young		18 January 1926	10 December 1928
	10	Arthur Stallworthy		10 December 1928	22 September 1931		Ward
							Forbes
	(9)	Alexander Young		22 September 1931	6 December 1935
	11	Peter Fraser		6 December 1935	30 April 1940		Savage
							Fraser
	12	Tim Armstrong		30 April 1940	21 January 1941
	13	Arnold Nordmeyer		21 January 1941	29 May 1947
	14	Mabel Howard		29 May 1947	13 December 1949
	15	Jack Watts		13 December 1949	19 September 1951		Holland
	16	Jack Marshall		19 September 1951	26 November 1954
	17	Ralph Hanan		26 November 1954	12 December 1957
							Holyoake
	18	Rex Mason		12 December 1957	12 December 1960		Nash
	19	Norman Shelton		12 December 1960	24 January 1962		Holyoake
	20	Don McKay		24 January 1962	9 February 1972
	21	Lance Adams-Schneider		9 February 1972	8 December 1972		Marshall
	22	Bob Tizard		8 December 1972	10 September 1974		Kirk
	23	Tom McGuigan		10 September 1974	12 December 1975		Rowling
	24	Frank Gill		12 December 1975	13 December 1978		Muldoon
	25	George Gair		13 December 1978	11 December 1981
	26	Aussie Malcolm		11 December 1981	26 July 1984
	27	Michael Bassett		26 July 1984	24 August 1987		Lange
	28	David Caygill		24 August 1987	30 January 1989
	29	Helen Clark		30 January 1989	2 November 1990
							Palmer
							Moore
	30	Simon Upton		2 November 1990	27 March 1993		Bolger
	31	Bill Birch		27 March 1993	29 November 1993
	32	Jenny Shipley		29 November 1993	16 December 1996
	33	Bill English		16 December 1996	2 February 1999
							Shipley
	34	Wyatt Creech		2 February 1999	10 December 1999
	35	Annette King		10 December 1999	19 October 2005		Clark
	36	Pete Hodgson		19 October 2005	5 November 2007
	37	David Cunliffe		5 November 2007	19 November 2008
	38	Tony Ryall		19 November 2008	6 October 2014		Key
	39	Jonathan Coleman		6 October 2014	26 October 2017
							English
	40	David Clark		26 October 2017	2 July 2020		Ardern
	41	Chris Hipkins		2 July 2020	6 November 2020
	42	Andrew Little		6 November 2020	1 February 2023
							Hipkins
	43	Ayesha Verrall		1 February 2023	27 November 2023
	44	Shane Reti		27 November 2023	Present		Luxon