25 Jun 2019

Mum frustrated as govt stalls on high-needs respite scheme

From Morning Report, 6:43 am on 25 June 2019

The mother of a boy with special needs says the government's refusal to spend $10 million on a new respite scheme is frustrating.

At the end of 2018 the Ministry of Health was supposed to introduce 'I Choose', a new service that would have allowed families to choose their own respite care.

'I Choose' would have paid families between $500 to $5,000 a year, allowing them to buy the respite support which suited them best.

But the government baulked at the cost of the scheme. RNZ's Catherine Hutton spoke to Stacey O'Connor who cares for her 6-year-old son Daniel. He is unable to speak or move without help, and is fed through a tube.