About us Mō mātou

About the Ministry of Health and the New Zealand health system. 

Regulation & legislation Ngā here me ngā ture

Health providers and products we regulate, and laws we administer.

Strategies & initiatives He rautaki, he tūmahi hou

How we’re working to improve health outcomes for all New Zealanders.

Māori health Hauora Māori

Increasing access to health services, achieving equity and improving outcomes for Māori.

Statistics & research He tatauranga, he rangahau

Data and insights from our health surveys, research and monitoring.

Legal restrictions on reporting assisted dying

The End of Life Choice Act 2019 (Section 36) prohibits the publication of:

  • the method by which the medication was administered
  • the place where the medication was administered
  • the name of the person who administered the medication, or the name of that person’s employer.

The publication of any of these details is an offence. You cannot make them public even if the patient, their family or the practitioner are comfortable with the details being released.

What the restrictions apply to

Restricted details cannot be disseminated via:

  • broadcast media
  • a newspaper
  • a book, journal or newsletter
  • an audio or video recording
  • a website that is accessible to the public
  • social media.

The restrictions do not apply to court or tribunal proceedings or to reports and publications of those proceedings.

Reporting general experiences of assisted dying

Practitioners can only be named in relation to their general experiences with assisted dying, but not in relation to specific cases.

If you would like to interview a practitioner about general experiences with assisted dying, contact the media team.

The Registrar (assisted dying) is also available for interview requests

Contact the Media Team

For questions about reporting assisted dying, or to request an interview, contact the Ministry of Health’s Media Team.

Email: [email protected]

© Ministry of Health – Manatū Hauora