New Zealand to consolidate health care into national service

FILE - In this Aug. 5, 2019, file photo, New Zealand's then Justice Minister Andrew Little speaks to the media in Wellington, New Zealand. Now the Health Minister Little said Wednesday, April 21, 2021, that New Zealand will overhaul its fragmented healthcare system to create a new national service similar to the one revered by many in Britain. (AP Photo/Nick Perry, File)

FILE - In this March 16, 2019, file photo, flowers are placed outside Christchurch Hospital in Christchurch, New Zealand. Health Minister Andrew Little said Wednesday, April 21, 2021, that New Zealand will overhaul its fragmented healthcare system to create a new national service similar to the one revered by many in Britain. (AP Photo/Mark Baker, File)

FILE - In this May 1, 2006, file photo, people stand outside the Ascot Hospital in Auckland, New Zealand. Health Minister Andrew Little said Wednesday, April 21, 2021, that New Zealand will overhaul its fragmented healthcare system to create a new national service similar to the one revered by many in Britain. (AP Photo/Michael Bradley, File)

New Zealand's Health Minister Andrew Little speaks to the media at Parliament House in Wellington, New Zealand, on April 7, 2021. New Zealand announced Wednesday, April 21, 2021 it will overhaul its fragmented healthcare system to create a new national service similar to the one revered by many in Britain. Little said that over three years, the currently divided into 20 district health boards will be replaced by a single new body called Health New Zealand. (Ben McKay/AAP Image via AP)