Patients from Tokelau, Niue and Cook Islands

Generally, clients born in Tokelau, Niue or the Cook Islands have New Zealand citizenship and are therefore lawfully resident in New Zealand.

However, to be eligible for Emergency Benefit the client should generally be ordinarily resident in New Zealand.

There are 2 groups of clients coming from these countries to New Zealand who access secondary and tertiary health services. These are: 

• patients referred to New Zealand medical treatment through a Patient Referral Scheme, together with the patient's attendant (if any)

and

• patients referred by their country of origin medical practitioner or nurse practitioner and accepted for medical treatment by a secondary or tertiary medical service provider in New Zealand, together with the patient's attendant (if any)

These clients may not be ordinarily resident in New Zealand but can still qualify for Emergency

Some clients coming to New Zealand for treatment will require an attendant to assist them. MSD may also consider Emergency Benefit for the attendant. This Emergency Benefit will need to be considered equivalent to Supported Living Payment - caring for a person. These clients (and attendants, if any) may not be ordinarily resident in New Zealand.

However, MSD may consider exercising its discretion to approve Emergency Benefit because the:

• client and attendant (if any) meet all the other Emergency Benefit eligibility criteria and
• client is under the supervision of a medical practitioner or nurse practitioner 

Clients referred to New Zealand through a Patient Referral Scheme from Tokelau, Niue and the Cook Islands cannot access or get the health service they need in their own country as these services are not available.

An Emergency Benefit equivalent to Jobseeker Support on ground of health condition, injury or disability may be considered if a client has arrived under a Patient Referral Scheme.

There will be some clients from Tokelau, Niue or Cook Islands referred to secondary or tertiary medical treatment in New Zealand by their medical or nurse practitioner (or equivalent in their country of origin), rather than through a Patient Referral Scheme.

For these clients MSD may consider Emergency Benefit equivalent to Jobseeker Support on ground of health condition, injury or disability. However, if the client could afford the travel, MSD should check if they may be able to support themselves while present in New Zealand.