| Last update | 2011-09-05 14:10:47 | 2011-09-05 14:00:23 | 2011-09-05 14:00:23 | 2011-09-05 14:10:47 | 2011-09-05 14:00:23 |
|---|
| Video Policy | | | | | |
|---|
| Goal or Vision | | Labour is firmly committed to keeping ACC in public ownership and
we will continue to improve it. ACC belongs to New Zealanders and
every Kiwi is a shareholder. | The Green Party envisions a holistic social security, health and
disability system, focused on promoting good health, reducing the
risk and impact of illness and injury, and improving the quality of
life. | | All New Zealanders are in a position to take out risk insurance for
accident, sickness and healthcare, not just the wealthy, and to
receive better service as a result. |
|---|
| Policy Principles | | | | | |
|---|
| Principle 1 | | ACC – Everybody is Covered | Equitable rehabilitation for all people suffering impairment caused
by injury, illness or other disability. | | The social welfare system should be removed (as far as possible)
from day-to-day political decision making. This is vital. Until
this happens, the well-organised special interest groups will
continue to do great harm to the rest of us. |
|---|
| Principle 2 | | Retaining ACC in Public Hands - Keeping it Kiwi | The retention of public provision of rehabilitation and
compensation for personal injury, funded through an equitable mix
of levies on employers, employees, motor vehicle usage and general
taxation. | | Transfer power from large institutions (Accident Compensation
Corporation) and impersonal bureaucracies (Health, Education and
Social Welfare Departments) to individuals. Such institutions will
never care about us or know as much about us as we do – we need to
remove their decision-making power from them as it affects
individuals. |
|---|
| Principle 3 | | Ensuring New Zealanders pay fair and reasonable levies | The Green Party believes that rehabilitation to the greatest extent
practicable, rather than theoretical work capacity, ought to be the
main focus of ACC. | | Restore the buyer/seller relationship to consumers and providers3
So that each of us as consumers becomes the principal buyer of
welfare services, rather than third parties, be they welfare,
superannuation, health or education, as we do with other goods and
services |
|---|
| Principle 4 | | Extending and Improving ACC | | | Subject social welfare to the benefits of competition. Create
market-based organisations where each of us benefits from good
decisions or bears the cost of bad ones (note: none could be as bad
as that which government inflicts on us all at the moment) |
|---|
| Principle 5 | | Injury Prevention | | | Create a marketplace where individuals (as much as possible) spend
their own money, rather than someone else's. Major tax reductions
and, for some, tax credits will enable all New Zealanders to buy
what they need in the market. When people spend their own money
rather than someone else's, they demand better service and higher
standards |
|---|
| Policy Details | | | | | |
|---|
| Detail 1 | | Labour will continue to maintain ACC as a publicly administered and
delivered social insurance scheme which focuses on injury
prevention, along with fair and effective treatment and
rehabilitation. | The Green Party will: Ensure that all people who have a genuine
work-related gradual process injury, disease or infection,
including occupational overuse injuries and chemical poisoning, can
obtain ACC cover. | | All New Zealanders will have the choice of buying the welfare
products they need in a competitive open marketplace (health cover,
sickness, accident and health insurance) as a result of: higher
personal income via Tax reductions (flowing from the ability to
earn a tax fee income and/or tax credits) plus an employer
contribution |
|---|
| Detail 2 | | Labour will introduce an immediate law change to extend the 2014
fully funded target to 2019 for the Residual Claims accounts to
reduce pressure on New Zealanders’ levy payments. | The Green Party will: Ensure that all people who receive unexpected
and unintended injuries as a consequence of medical treatment can
access ACC cover. | | Insurance companies will be obliged to provide information relating
to prices and costs, people can elect to rely on self-insurance for
small items of expenditure. |
|---|
| Detail 3 | | Labour will review ACC’s coverage of work-related pain disorders. | The Green Party will: Restore cover to people who suffer only
mental injury caused by accident, treatment by registered health
professionals, or work-related gradual process injury, disease or
infection. | | Consumers spending their own money will lead to lower levels of
demand than under the current welfare system with self-insurance
evident for non-catastrophic events. |
|---|
| Detail 4 | | Labour will ensure ACC reduces the time taken to make a decision
about Earnings Related Compensation in marginal cases. | The Green Party will: Ensure that adequate and appropriate social
and vocational rehabilitation is provided. | | Pressure to reduce costs will be evident throughout the system so
higher incomes for suppliers will depend on them being more
efficient than other providers. Under the current system, providers
often increase their own incomes only when costs go up. |
|---|
| Detail 5 | | Labour will improve the Accredited Employers' Scheme to ensure it
is fairer for injured workers in light of Council of Trade Unions
and Business NZ recommendations. | The Green Party will: Introduce a regime under which weekly
compensation is treated no differently from other income for
benefit abatement purposes. | | Choice for the vast majority of the population will be readily
available, unlike the current welfare system, when most people,
having paid 40% or more of their income in taxes can't afford
alternative private options for healthcare or sickness or to save
for their retirement. This is now possible for all New Zealanders. |
|---|
| Detail 6 | | Labour will complete the implementation of the non-fiscal
recommendations of the Goddard Report on Physiotherapists and move
towards an agreed sustainable funding model for the future. | The Green Party will: Take into account seasonal workers and people
in temporary employment in the formula setting the level of weekly
compensation | | Innovation will be seen everywhere and is one of the only ways a
company can stay ahead. |
|---|
| Detail 7 | | Labour will build on the success of the New Zealand Injury
Prevention Strategy to ensure ACC has a leadership and coordinating
role in its implementation and will work to improve further New
Zealand’s injury prevention record. | The Green Party will: Adequately fund independent advocacy agencies
for people who are injured. | | Currently, the government welfare, education and healthcare
industry are often hostile to change and discourage development and
innovation. |
|---|
| Detail 8 | | Labour will strengthen workplace injury prevention initiatives
through industry taskforces to increase the skill levels and number
of trained Health and Safety Representatives (currently 20,000). | The Green Party will: Create an ACC ombusdman to take over the
functions of the ACC Complaints Investigation Service. | | Prices will be readily available and producers will advertise price
discounts and quality differences. This is not so with the current
government welfare system. |
|---|
| Detail 9 | | | | | Quality of service comparisons will be readily available for
everyone with regard to the various companies offering products in
the marketplace. |
|---|
| MP to Contact | | | Kevin Hague | | |
|---|
| Source and Link to Policy Documentation | | | http://www.greens.org.nz/policy/accident-compensation-policy-equity-and-social-justice | | http://www.act.org.nz/accident-compensation-policy |
|---|
| Vote For Policy | 0 Likes | 0 Likes | 1 Likes | 0 Likes | 0 Likes |
|---|
| Rate Policy | no rating | no rating | 4.0 1 rating | no rating | no rating |
|---|