NZ Index · Health

Worse

Are fewer people ending up in hospital for things primary care can treat?

Official Māori amenable mortality was 123.8 per 100,000 in 2018–20 versus 52.8 for non-Māori (Tatau Kahukura; age-standardised). Pacific amenable mortality halved from 281.1 to 151.1 between 2000 and 2020. Child ASH admissions were 23,206 in 2025. The 375.6 figure on older pages was all-cause age-standardised mortality per 100,000 in 2023, not avoidable mortality. OECD treatable/preventable mortality is not published for New Zealand.

Verdict Worse is derived from the official series · Data as of 1 Aug 2026

ASH admissions, children 0–4

23,206 admissions

Ministry of Health (opens in a new tab) · Health and Independence Report 2025 · Data as of 1 Aug 2026

Other official series

Gaps — raw and official adjusted

ethnicity

Ambulatory-sensitive hospitalisations, children 0–4

Māori (2025) compared with European/Other (2025). Period 2025.

Raw gap

3,773 per 100,000 higher

9068 vs 5295 per 100,000

Official adjusted gap

Not published

An explained share is not published — CivicNZ does not invent one.

Rates are age-banded (0–4 years). HIR 2025 does not publish an ASH gap adjusted for NZDep, housing, smoking in the household, or access to primary care.

Measured factors

  • Applied

    Age structure (age-standardised rates)

    Restricted to ages 0–4.

  • Not published

    Neighbourhood deprivation (NZDep)

    Ethnicity × NZDep ASH rates are not in the HIR 2025 extract.

  • Not published

    Obesity prevalence

    Not published as an ASH adjuster for children.

  • Not published

    Daily smoking prevalence

    Household smoking is a known associated factor; no official residual is published here.

  • Not published

    Diabetes prevalence

    Not applicable to this child series.

  • Not published

    Rurality (Geographic Classification for Health)

    Not published.

  • Not published

    GP enrolment

    ASH is defined against primary-care-preventable admissions; enrolment is not published as an adjuster.

  • Not published

    GP visits

    Not published.

  • Not published

    Travel time to care

    Not published.

ASH rate per 100,000, children 0–4, 2025

GroupRate
Pacific peoples14,802
Māori9,068
Asian peoples6,392
European/Other5,295

Pacific children have the highest published rate. Definition changes and coding practice affect ASH.

Official source (opens in a new tab) · Data as of 1 Aug 2026

ethnicity

Amenable mortality, ages 0–74

Māori (2018–20) compared with non-Māori (2018–20). Period 2018–20.

Raw gap

71.0 per 100,000 higher

123.8 vs 52.8 per 100,000

Official adjusted gap

71.0 per 100,000 (both figures are official age-standardised rates); official rate ratio 2.34

An explained share is not published — CivicNZ does not invent one.

Tatau Kahukura 2024 Table 45 publishes age-standardised rates (2001 Census Māori standard) and an official Māori vs non-Māori rate ratio of 2.34 (95% CI 2.25–2.44). The crude (not age-standardised) ethnicity gap is not in that table, so an explained-by-age share cannot be computed. Further official adjustment for NZDep, obesity, smoking, diabetes, rurality, or access is not published.

Measured factors

  • Applied

    Age structure (age-standardised rates)

    Official age-standardised rates and rate ratio (2001 Census Māori standard).

  • Not published

    Neighbourhood deprivation (NZDep)

    Ethnicity × NZDep amenable mortality is not in Table 45.

  • Not published

    Obesity prevalence

    Not used as an official adjuster of this gap.

  • Not published

    Daily smoking prevalence

    Not used as an official adjuster of this gap.

  • Not published

    Diabetes prevalence

    Not used as an official adjuster of this gap.

  • Context only

    Rurality (Geographic Classification for Health)

    HIR 2024: rural amenable mortality was 20% higher than urban in 2018–2020. That is not an ethnicity residual.

  • Not published

    GP enrolment

    Not published as an amenable-mortality adjuster.

  • Not published

    GP visits

    Not published as an amenable-mortality adjuster.

  • Not published

    Travel time to care

    Not published.

Amenable mortality per 100,000, ages 0–74, 2018–20 (Tatau Kahukura 2024)

GroupMaleFemaleTotal
Māori148.7100.3123.8
non-Māori64.341.552.8

Age-standardised to the 2001 Census Māori population. Official RR 2.34 (CI 2.25–2.44). Do not mix with WHO-standard series.

Pacific amenable mortality (WHO world standard, Tupu Ola Moui)

YearPacific rate
2000281.1
2020151.1

Official 2020 ratio vs non-Māori non-Pacific: 2.3. Different standard population from the table above.

Official source (opens in a new tab) · Data as of 1 Dec 2024

ethnicity

Ambulatory-sensitive hospitalisations, adults 45–64

Māori (2020–22) compared with non-Māori (2020–22). Period 2020–22.

Raw gap

3,403.2 per 100,000 higher

6371.2 vs 2968 per 100,000

Official adjusted gap

3,403.2 per 100,000 (both figures are official age-standardised rates); official rate ratio 2.15

An explained share is not published — CivicNZ does not invent one.

Tatau Kahukura 2024 Table 45 publishes age-standardised ASH rates for ages 45–64 (2001 Census Māori standard) and an official rate ratio of 2.15 (95% CI 2.12–2.17). The crude ethnicity gap is not in that table, so an explained-by-age share cannot be computed. Further official adjustment for NZDep or access is not published.

Measured factors

  • Applied

    Age structure (age-standardised rates)

    Official age-standardised rates and rate ratio (2001 Census Māori standard).

  • Not published

    Neighbourhood deprivation (NZDep)

    Ethnicity × NZDep ASH is not in Table 45.

  • Not published

    Obesity prevalence

    Not an official ASH adjuster here.

  • Not published

    Daily smoking prevalence

    Not an official ASH adjuster here.

  • Not published

    Diabetes prevalence

    Not an official ASH adjuster here.

  • Not published

    Rurality (Geographic Classification for Health)

    Not published as an ASH residual.

  • Not published

    GP enrolment

    ASH is defined against primary-care-preventable admissions; enrolment is not published as an adjuster.

  • Not published

    GP visits

    Not published as an ASH adjuster.

  • Not published

    Travel time to care

    Not published.

ASH, adults 45–64, 2020–22 (Tatau Kahukura 2024)

GroupRate per 100,000
Māori6,371.2
non-Māori2,968.0

Age-standardised to the 2001 Census Māori population. Official RR 2.15 (CI 2.12–2.17).

ASH, children 0–4, 2020–22 (crude) and 2025 (HIR)

Group2020–22 crude2025 HIR
Māori6,541.59,068
non-Māori / European/Other5,617.35,295

Different collections and years. Do not treat the two columns as a continuous series.

Official source (opens in a new tab) · Data as of 1 Dec 2024

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CivicNZ · Are we getting healthier?

Worse

Are fewer people ending up in hospital for things primary care can treat?

Official Māori amenable mortality was 123.8 per 100,000 in 2018–20 versus 52.8 for non-Māori (Tatau Kahukura; age-standardised). Pacific amenable mortality halved from 281.1 to 151.1 between 2000 and 2020. Child ASH admissions were 23,206 in 2025. The 375.6 figure on older pages was all-cause age-standardised mortality per 100,000 in 2023, not avoidable mortality. OECD treatable/preventable mortality is not published for New Zealand.

civicnz.org/health · Official sources · Not a causal claim

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