Enrolment in a primary health organisation (PHO) is voluntary. Most New Zealanders are however enrolled through their general practice and gain the benefits associated with belonging to a PHO, which can include cheaper doctors’ visits and reduced costs of prescription medicines.
Enrolment information for the public
Most general practices are now part of a PHO. If you are not sure whether your general practice is part of a PHO, you can ask your regular doctor or practice nurse.
To enrol, you will have to complete and sign a form which the doctor, nurse or medical centre receptionist will give you. The form will require you to provide some personal details such as name, age, date of birth, address and ethnicity. The information collected at enrolment is subject to the Privacy Act 1993 and the Health Information Privacy Code 1994, so the privacy of your information is protected.
Enrolment demographics
Information is available on the number of people who are enrolled in a PHO and the demographic details of enrolees by PHO, Lead DHB and DHB of Domicile. The tables below offer an historical view of the number of people who are enrolled at a point in time.
You can download the latest pivot table of PHO Enrolment Demographics (Excel, 3 MB) as at January 2020.
Previous PHO Enrolment Demographic quarterly tables
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2019 Q4 (October to December 2019) (xls, 3 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2019 Q3 (July to September 2019) (xls, 2.96 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2019 Q2 (April to June 2019) (xls, 2.9 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2019 Q1 (January to March 2019), (xlsx, 2.63 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2018 Q4 (October to December 2018), (xlsx, 4.14 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2018 Q3 (July to September 2018), (xlsx, 4.19 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2018 Q2 (April to June 2018), (xlsx, 4.12 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2018 Q1 (January to March 2018), (xlsx, 4.12 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2017 Q4 (October to December 2017), (xlsx,2.90 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2017 Q3 (July to September 2017), (xlsx, 2.59 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2017 Q2 (April to June 2017), (xlsx, 2.87 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2017 Q1 (January to March 2017), (xlsx, 2.93 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2016 Q4 (October to December 2016), (xlsx, 3.65 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2016 Q3 (July to September 2016), (xlsx, 3.71 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2016 Q2 (April to June 2016), (xlsx, 3.63 MB )
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2016 Q1 (January to March 2016), (xlsx, 3.64 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2015 Q4 (October to December 2015), (xlsx, 3.56 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2015 Q3 (July to September 2015), (xlsx, 3.65 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2015 Q2 (April to June 2015), (xlsx, 3.70 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2015 Q1 (January to March 2015), (xlsx, 3.70 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2014 Q4 (October to December 2014), (xlsx, 3.73 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2014 Q3 (July to September 2014), (xlsx, 3.74 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2014 Q2 (April to June 2014), (xlsx, 3.75 MB)
- PHO Enrolment Demographics 2014 Q1 (January to March 2014), (xlsx, 3.77 MB)
Access to primary care
The table below shows the estimated percentage of the total population (based on Stats NZ 2018 population projections update – based on Census 2013) who are enrolled in a PHO by ethnicity as at January 2020.
| Māori | Pacific | Other | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | 718,427 | 343,134 | 3,654,250 | 4,715,811 |
| Percentage | 91% | 106% | 94% | 94% |
The estimated coverage for the Pacific population is more than 100% as the underlying population comes from Stats NZ population projections and the enrolment number comes from primary care data collection. Detailed information on the number and percentage of the total population who are enrolled in a PHO for each of the 20 district health boards can be found in the spreadsheets below. The information is presented by ethnicity, deprivation, gender and age group for each quarter since October 2015.
- Access to Primary Care as at January 2020 (xlsx, 40 KB)
- Access to Primary Care as at October 2019 (xlsx, 39 KB)
- Access to Primary Care as at July 2019 (xlsx, 39 KB)
- Access to Primary Care as at April 2019 (xlsx, 40 KB)
- Access to Primary Care as at January 2019 (xlsx, 39 KB)
- Access to Primary Care as at October 2018 (xlsx, 38 KB)
- Access to Primary Care as at July 2018 (xlsx, 38 KB)
- Access to Primary Care as at April 2018 (xlsx, 37 KB)
- Access to Primary Care as at January 2018 (xlsx, 39 KB)
- Access to Primary Care as at October 2017 (xlsx, 38 KB)
- Access to Primary Care as at July 2017 (xlsx, 41 KB)
- Access to Primary Care as at April 2017 (xlsx, 41 KB)
- Access to Primary Care as at January 2017 (xlsx, 41 KB)
- Access to Primary Care as at October 2016 (xlsx, 41 KB)
- Access to Primary Care as at July 2016 (xlsx, 41 KB)
- Access to Primary Care as at April 2016 (xlsx, 41 KB)
- Access to Primary Care as at January 2016 (xlsx, 40 KB)
- Access to Primary Care as at October 2015 (xlsx, 41 KB)
Enrolment rules and guidelines
The document Enrolment Requirements for PHOs outlines the enrolment parameters for PHOs, including operational policies and requirements.