20 February 2014

Health Minister needs to get his story straight

Health Minister Tony Ryall has today raised more questions than answers and needs to get his facts straight on what he knew about potential fraud involving publically funded health dollars, the Green Party said today.

“In reply to my questions today, the Minister contradicted himself and tied himself in knots, leaving us with more questions than when we started,” said Green Party health spokesperson Kevin Hague.

“He said that the Ministry of Health had not received a letter on this issue from the Southern DHB until 2014 and then moments later that the Audit and Compliance Business Unit of the Ministry had received the letter in 2010 – which is it Minister?

“Yesterday the DHB told the Health Select Committee that they wrote to the Ministry in 2010 but did not receive advice back until a few months ago, but the Minister asserted both that his Ministry did not receive it and that it had been taking action on the contents of that letter this whole time.

“When the DHB wrote to the Audit and Compliance Unit, why was no one else in the Ministry or the Ministers office informed?

“While the Minister knew that there was a dispute for many years, how could he never know that there was potential fraud while the DHB, and the Audit and Compliance Unit, knew all about it?

“The Auditor General should investigate this whole issue thoroughly to identify when the Minister was informed that there was potential fraud, and what the Minister’s role in this whole mess has been.”

ENDS

© Scoop Media