The Government's Aged Care Ministerial Advisory Group (Group) has now released its recommendations for reform of New Zealand's aged care system. The report is the culmination of the Group's work since January 2026 and was commissioned to address the long-standing structural and funding challenges in the sector.

The Group, made up of 10 members and chaired by former Health Minister Hon David Cunliffe, was tasked with providing recommendations across three areas of the aged care system:

• the funding model needed to support sustainable services, particularly the supply of beds;
• how the cost of providing aged care could reasonably be shared between recipients and Government; and
• the changes needed to contracting arrangements and regulatory settings to remove red tape, support service delivery and improve the integration between aged care and wider health services.

Key recommendations

Hon David Cunliffe presented the report, titled “A place to grow old: Securing the future of aged care”, noting “Every New Zealander deserves to age well – with dignity and choice – but that won’t happen unless we fix the existing system, which is fragmented, hard to access, and underfunded”. The report recommends the Government commit to a full structural reform programme and that it begin immediately. It includes 40 recommendations across the following areas:

• Shifting to an integrated system centred on people
• Better services to support ageing well in place
• More effective contracting and regulatory settings and workforce
• Changing the funding model to become a system that meets people’s needs
• Resetting resident contributions towards costs for a sustainable system
• Implementing and delivering the proposed major reform

Next steps

It’s now in the Government’s court to consider the recommendations. Minister for Seniors, Casey Costello has said Government has directed the Ministry of Health to work with other agencies to develop advice for the Government on the recommendations.

The extent to which Government moves to implement change, and the pace at which it does so, will be closely watched across the sector (and it is expected there will be opportunities for engagement before changes to policy, funding, contracting, or regulatory settings are finalised).

Our view

The recommendation for full structural reform is the right one. We will be considering the report and recommendations in full but given the current system is under significant strain and New Zealand’s population is rapidly ageing, creating a new system which is fit for the future appears the only viable option.

The aged care system is an integral part of our overall health system. It needs to operate effectively, efficiently and sustainably in order to meet demand, give ageing New Zealanders a good standard of care and attract investment, innovation and quality providers. These recommendations are a positive move to recognising and achieving that.