New Zealand: People with Disabilities - World Health Systems Facts

“Inequities are pronounced among Māori and Pacific children⁷ and among disabled people, who make up 24% of the population and 26% of Māori.^8,9 Employment rates illustrate these disparities: only 22.5% of disabled people were employed compared with 69.8% of non-disabled people.¹⁰ Lower incomes, mobility barriers and limited transport further restrict food access.¹¹ Additionally, the 2013 Disability Survey found that 11.8% of disabled people in New Zealand reported dietary restrictions due to their disability,⁹ indicating the importance of tailored food security measures that consider their unique dietary needs.”

Source: Pillay M, Jupiterwala R, Pereira JC. Disability and food insecurity in Aotearoa New Zealand: a population-based analysis. N Z Med J. 2026 Jun 26;139(1637):85-97. doi: 10.26635/6965.7032.

“In Aotearoa New Zealand two government agencies—Ministry of Social Development (MSD) and Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC)—provide financial and other support to people with work-limiting health conditions sustained through disability, illness or injury.¹ ACC does not cover long-term conditions that are not work- or injury-related, however, and is not included in this substudy. While the type and level of support provided depends on how an impairment occurred and incapacity manifests,^1,7 the level of weekly payment depends on the age, relationship status and number of dependent children.¹⁶ Administered through Work and Income New Zealand (WINZ), MSD provides two main benefits for people with work-limiting health conditions or disability, including Jobseeker Support—Health Condition or Disability (JS-HCD) for short-term incapacity and the Supported Living Payment (SLP) for permanent and severe incapacity.¹⁶ These main benefits can be accessed by citizens, permanent residents or residence-class visa holders who have lived in Aotearoa New Zealand for more than 2 years.¹⁶ MSD uses an individualised application process and provides flat-rate, means-tested support.^1,17 All recipients are subject to case management and medical reassessment.^1,16“

Source: Uerata L, Jones A, Atatoa Carr P, Tamatea J, Scott N, Lawrenson R. “The welfare system is a necessity for us”: providers’ perspectives on the barriers to accessing welfare supports for people living with work-limiting conditions and disability in Aotearoa New Zealand. N Z Med J. 2026;139(1629):41-48. Published 2026 Feb 13. doi:10.26635/6965.6991

“Our analysis of the 2019/2020 NZHS [New Zealand Health Survey] provides the first comprehensive examination of the relationship between disability and food insecurity among adults in New Zealand. Disabled people face more than twice the risk of food insecurity compared with non-disabled people, and this association persists after adjusting for socio-economic factors.

“The 8% estimate of disabled adults in our study is lower than national estimates (24%)⁹ and global estimates (15–16%),^3,19 largely due to differing definitions: Stats NZ includes 10 disability domains, whereas our study covers six using a higher severity threshold. Despite this, our findings align with international evidence showing people with disabilities consistently experience higher rates of food insecurity.^20,21“

Source: Pillay M, Jupiterwala R, Pereira JC. Disability and food insecurity in Aotearoa New Zealand: a population-based analysis. N Z Med J. 2026 Jun 26;139(1637):85-97. doi: 10.26635/6965.7032.

“This substudy highlights issues associated with accessing welfare support for Māori patients with long-term conditions from providers’ perspectives. Providers’ experiences present the welfare system as demeaning, difficult, time-consuming, unresponsive and unwilling to see and support real people appropriately, meaningfully and holistically.^10,15 Crucial supports that enable access to welfare support are not being provided, including advocacy within the hospital context. Consequently, many eligible Māori patients are not accessing and being denied their full right to welfare support.^1,6,10,15 The various barriers and blocks described above show the health and welfare systems are not designed to enable access, consider equity, nor appropriately counteract the effects of colonisation and systemic racism.^10,15 These are breaches of the right for Māori to access income and other support.^1,6,15

“Access to economic security is essential to health and wellbeing, especially for people with long-term conditions.^1,6,10,15 Access to such support is crucial for Māori and Pacific patients as they tend to be diagnosed younger than non-Māori, non-Pacific people, and their experience of long-term conditions is exacerbated by inequitable access to healthcare and poorer care.^10,25 The National Party–led coalition government’s (2023–) commitment to reduce welfare receipt, increase the obligations of recipients and apply sanctions more strictly will make life more difficult for people with long-term conditions and result in further economic hardship.^26,27

“The current approach to welfare provision positions providers as gatekeepers to income and other support, and they therefore have a role in ensuring equitable access. However, this is currently underfunded, understaffed and providers need support from MSDj [Ministry of Social Development] and WINZ [Work and Income New Zealand] to ensure they understand the available welfare supports. The current approach also puts significant onus on advocates and individuals in difficult situations to navigate a “landscape of diverse, uncoordinated and disordered service provision” to access the support patients are eligible for.²⁸ If constrained, stretched, underfunded non-government and community organisations (whose contracts have been cut) continue to be expected to overcome these government failures,²⁹ the government will not fix the failures it creates and recreates. We urge government agencies to take responsibility for the failures and make change.

World Health Systems Facts is a project of the Real Reporting Foundation. We provide reliable statistics and other data from authoritative sources regarding health systems and policies in the US and sixteen other OECD member nations.

Page last updated July 1, 2026 by Doug McVay, Editor.