All five government health targets showed year-on-year improvement in the January to March 2026 quarter, with gains across emergency departments, cancer treatment and elective surgery.
Health Minister Simeon Brown announced the results, saying "the Government's focus is on shorter wait times for Kiwis, and these results show the system is continuing to move in the right direction".
The proportion of patients receiving elective treatment within four months rose to 64.9% in the first quarter, up from 57.3% in the same period last year. A total of 51,089 people were treated from the waitlist in the quarter, a 5.5% increase on the previous year.
Cancer treatment times also improved, with 86.2% of patients beginning treatment within 31 days of a decision to treat, compared with 84.6% a year earlier. The number of people starting cancer treatment rose from 4,364 to 4,793.
First specialist assessments within four months reached 61.2%, up from 58.2%, with 178,349 assessments completed in the quarter. Childhood immunisation rates climbed to 83.5% of 24-month-olds fully immunised, from 79.3% the previous year. Emergency department performance showed a smaller gain, with 74.4% of patients admitted, discharged or transferred within six hours, compared with 74.2% in 2025.