The Waitakere Indian Association (WIA) registers its strong disappointment at Te Whatu Ora's (Health New Zealand's) ethnic prioritisation policy and its decision to roll out it out across the country. The policy goes against the basic tenets of universal healthcare.

The Indian community feels the policy, which gives priority to Māori and Pacific Island patients when deciding who should get an operation first, is hugely discriminatory and racist. The quarter-million strong Indian diaspora in New Zealand is seriously concerned that they will be deprived of quality state-funded healthcare and will be kicked down the waiting list.

The Fijian Indian community, who identify as a Pacific community, are especially left in the lurch since they fear institutional discrimination. They fear they will be treated as Indians and will miss out on clinical prioritisation.

"It is a known medical fact that people of Indian origin are genetically susceptible to heart disease and diabetes, two very serious ailments," says WIA President Sunil Kaushal. "Since the Indian community is lower ranked in Te Whatu Ora's ethnic category, we fear that this policy will lead to serious health outcomes for us."

Kaushal has also dissed the Equity Adjustor Score. He says that his community is not in favour of a computer algorithm that will prioritise who should be operated on and who should be pushed further down the list. "You cannot take the decision out of a surgeon's hand and expect a machine to make that decision," he says.

Such discriminatory, racist, and mischievous policies will not only erode people's faith in New Zealand's health system but will motivate medical professionals to move overseas. This is something that the already struggling New Zealand health sector cannot afford. Such discriminatory policies will also make New Zealand an unattractive destination for migrants. 

WIA strongly condemns this racist policy and urges the Health Minister to abandon the policy. Let humanity trump politics.

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