Funding cut may hurt rheumatic fever battle

New Zealand has what many health workers consider a scandalously high rate of rheumatic fever. Photo / Thinkstock

Health officials warned the Government that the cut in funding for its Healthy Housing programme could undermine the $3 million-a-year scheme to combat rheumatic fever.

New Zealand has what many health workers consider a scandalously high rate of rheumatic fever, a Third World disease associated with poverty and especially household overcrowding. The disease is caused by failing to detect and treat - with antibiotics - a sore throat caused by extremely infectious group A streptococcal bacteria.

It is estimated that more than 40 per cent of siblings of a child with a "strep throat" will catch the infection.

Housing NZ spent $126 million from 2001 to last year on Healthy Housing, a scheme in which state tenants in poor areas are put in touch with health and social services, and improvements are made to their home's ventilation, insulation and heating. Many have had overcrowding fixed by having a room added, being shifted to a bigger state house, or being assisted into larger private accommodation.

The scheme, which grew from research showing overcrowding was a major risk factor in the meningococcal B epidemic, has been shown to reduce hospital admissions of young people.

A Health Ministry cabinet paper on the rheumatic fever programme - which includes testing children's sore throats in many high-risk areas - comments on the reduced funding for Healthy Housing.

"This reduction in funding may impact on the rheumatic fever programme through limiting the extent and nature of housing interventions [that] can be incorporated into the wraparound support for whanau/families affected by rheumatic fever."

Housing NZ said yesterday that it spent $5.7 million last year on the Healthy Housing programme, in addition to $63.3 million of other housing improvement work to make its houses warmer, drier and healthier.

"In the coming year [we] will spend $89.4 million, including $1 million for the Healthy Housing Programme, to improve and upgrade homes."

"The lessons learned through the Healthy Houses Programme have now been incorporated into our housing improvement programme ... ."

Labour health spokesman Grant Robertson said, "We have a great concern the Government is not backing the overall rheumatic fever reduction programme by not doing the things that make the longer term difference."

Health Minister Tony Ryall said last night the ministry's cabinet paper comment was "probably conjecture".

"We're quite confident of the rheumatic fever programme. All the advice we're getting is it's going to make a significant difference."

Infectious diseases paediatrician Professor Diana Lennon said she couldn't understand why the Government would reduce funding for such a valuable programme as Healthy Housing after it had been proven to reduce child hospital admissions including for lung infections.

"We're even talking about enlarging Starship. Part of that is the respiratory burden in winter. It's nutty."