The 2019 Wellbeing Budget allocated $1.9 billion for mental health. Photo: RNZ / Rob Dixon
- 29 initiatives received funding across 12 portfolios.
- 57 percent went to Health ($1.12 billion over four years).
- $1.54b was for new initiatives, $225.2 million for cost pressures, $194.1m for combined initiatives.
- The remaining 8 percent was reallocated or set aside for future use.
The jury is still out on whether Labour's mega investment into mental health in the 2019 Budget, is having a positive impact.
A new report from the Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission has found 92 percent of the $1.96 billion allocated for mental health was spent or committed by June 2023.
"The vast majority of the $1.9b investment has been spent and we can now show where the money went," the commission's chief executive Karen Orsborn said.
"We've documented where the money went because we thought it is important to clear up any public misunderstanding about an investment of this size.
"It's part of our monitoring role to bring transparency to investment decisions. Without it, people can lose confidence in the system's ability to deliver.
"Going forward, we need to ensure allocation of resources is underpinned by a long-term vision and strategy. Investment is still needed to sustain and scale up current and new initiatives in priority areas," Orsborn said.
Of the total investment package, 57 percent went to Health, which includes key initiatives such as the $455.1 million Access and Choice programme.
The rest of the package went across social and justice sectors, including 24.3 percent to Housing and Urban Development, 7.3 percent to Social Development, 6.6 percent to Corrections, 3.5 percent to Internal Affairs, and the remaining 1.3 percent to various government initiatives.
These figures are in line with an RNZ investigation into the spending, back in December.
Orsborn said while it was a waiting game to see if the investment was having a positive impact on the sector, the Access and Choice Programme, that provided support for the 'missing middle' , was proving successful.
"We know that as at June 2023 there were 185,000 people accessing those new primary and community services.
"So that's a lot of people being able to access services that they previously weren't able to access," she said.
Orsborn said only time would tell if it had had a positive impact, and if there had been any good outcomes from the spending.
The remaining 8 percent of funding was either reallocated or set aside for future use.
Report shows value in the investment - Labour
Meanwhile, Labour Mental Health spokesperson Ingrid Leary said the report confirmed hundreds of thousands of people had access to new primary and community mental health services and had used them.
Leary said it showed the value of the $455m Access and Choice initiative.
"The big investment into social, justice and housing sectors shows Labour in government is committed to addressing social determinants of mental health - something the Mental Health Commission report into acute care stated last week is critically important if we are to shift the dial," she said.
"Today's report highlights the need for continued investment yet nine months into the term, we see no new money for workforce and no workforce plan.
"Instead, we see cuts to frontline community services, closures of one-stop-shop and suicide prevention community services, a frontline hiring freeze and broken promises when it comes to specialist services."
