Where are the ICU beds, Damien?

“Senior Cabinet Minister Damien O’Connor has today claimed that the number of ICU beds has doubled – so where are they?” Asks ACT Leader David Seymour.

“Appearing on Newstalk ZB’s ‘The Country’ with Jamie MacKay, O’Connor claimed “ensuring we have the health system and the technology to keep people alive, that’s doubling the number of ICU beds, making sure we have staff that are appropriately trained, all of those things are occurring.”

“According to the New Zealand Medical Journal, New Zealand has one of the lowest levels of ICU beds per capita in the OECD at 4 per 100,000 population. This compares with Australia at 9, France at 16, and Germany at 34.

“Damien might not be aware of this, but it takes more than just a bed. It requires highly trained nurses who have not been prioritised to come into the country through our strict MIQ system.

“Health Minister Andrew Little should let New Zealanders know what the true hospitals and ICU capacity is.

“It’s time to start treating New Zealanders like adults. We can handle the truth and we don’t need the spin. The Government need to let us know what the capacity is and what it’s doing to improve it.”