Welcome to the New Zealand Charter of Health Practitioners Incorporated. The ‘Charter’ was founded in 1993 and incorporated as a non-for-profit society in 1994, under the New Zealand Incorporated Societies Act 1908.

Our aim is to support and represent natural healthcare professionals in the natural healthcare sector, and to promote the diverse modalities involved in the natural healthcare sector. We also aim to support the health and welfare of the communities in which our practitioners serve.
Consumer Protection
Our main emphasis is to uphold the welfare and health concerns of the health consumer, by providing practitioners of the highest professional standard and qualification obtainable.

Selecting a “Chartered” HealthCare Practitioner
The choice to investigate natural medicine and healthcare therapies can be a crucial turning point in one’s life, affecting physical as well as mental and emotional health. With the help of a Chartered healthcare practitioner, it is possible to take control of one’s personal health, and thereby eliminate the sense of frustration and helplessness that many feel with conventional (general) practitioners. The Charter is a national organisation providing a single united voice of the healthcare debate issue.

***** URGENT. Please Read and Act Now. *******
The Government is rapidly advancing new legislation on Natural Health Products

The Ministry of Health has presented it’s proposed Natural Health Products Bill outlining the regulations it wants to impose in New Zealand.  We need your help to fight this and we need it urgently.

The Charter has a number of concerns (detailed below) about the Ministry’s proposals.  We urge you to please inform yourself and to take action to make your opinion and voice heard on this important issue.

We are available to support you doing this.  Here are the options we would recommend

• Contact your local MP
• Contact the Minister  of Health and Assoc Minister of Health
• Write a submission (these closed on Mon 17th but an extension is readily given if you contact the Ministry on Ph: (04) 496 2000 and request one )

The most important action you can take immediately is to contact your MP and the Minister’s directly expressing your concerns and opinion.

We are posting details on the Ministry’s proposal, our submission and information to support you in making your own submission on the Charter website.

Here is a very brief summary of our main concerns, the Ministry proposes;

• No Natural Health product or ingredient currently available be allowed to remain on sale without first receiving a permit from the MoH regulator.
• Similarly no new Natural Health product or ingredient be allowed into NZ without first receiving a permit from the MoH regulator.
• The costs of regulation, all costs including permitting, testing, enforcement, monitoring and administration, will be in full cost recovery from producers and distributors of natural health products (govt will contribute $50,000 in year one while the bill to our sector will be $4.5million).  The costs are exorbitant and will put many out of business, and give us substandard products to prescribe removing many Natural Health products from sale.
• A regulator with broad powers to decide and implement new regulations and restrictions on the availability of Natural Health products without consultation.
• Alignment with the Australian TGA.
• Increased regulation of advertising and promotion of Natural Health products.
• A regulator that decides on therapeutic claims.
• A regulator that decides on efficacy of Natural Health products.
• A regulator that decides on safety of Natural Health products.
•  A regulator that decides on the availability in NZ of any new Natural Health ingredients or products.
• The regulator’s decision making on claims, efficacy and safety to be made a by an unelected, internally appointed Ministry of Health advisory committee.
•  Introduction of new manufacturing standards specifically targeting Natural Health products despite the many standards already in place.
•  A regulator with the power to set and impose compulsory levies on Natural Health products without consultation.
• New regulations on Natural Health products dispensed by practitioners.
•  No protection of the access to Natural Health products New Zealander’s currently enjoy.

What can you do?

Most importantly let the politicians know you are concerned and watching this bill’s development.

Please contact your MP personally, in writing and make an appointment to meet with them face to face and ask their advocacy in protecting New Zealander’s access to Natural Health products

Please write or email Tony Ryall and Jonathon Coleman expressing your concerns at the Ministry’s proposals.

Lastly if you have time and motivation, make a personal submission to the Ministry.  You will first need to contact them and ask for an extension as the submission deadline has passed.

The contacts are  The Policy Unit Health and Disability Systems Strategy Ph: (04) 496 2000 and email nhpproposal@moh.govt.nz


Here are some useful links

Consultation Paper as pdf
moh development natural health bill consult mar10

Consultation Paper as word doc
moh development natural health bill consult mar10

You can download the cover sheet to go with your submission here.

The Ministry summarises the proposals this way;

Key elements of the proposed scheme are:

1. Product approval, based on notification of products on a database
2. Recognition of the decisions of trusted overseas regulators, where appropriate
3. A list of prohibited ingredients
4. A list of permitted ingredients and a process for adding new ingredients
5. A list of permitted low-level natural health products claims
6. Labeling requirements
7. Advertising rules
8. Export certification, where it would assist companies to access overseas markets
9. A tailor-made manufacturing code of practice

To request an extension for your submission;

Phone the ministry (04) 496 2000 and request an extension from the Policy Unit, Health and Disability Systems Strategy Directorate

Then
Email your submission to nhpproposal@moh.govt.nz

Now
Please write or email Tony Ryall and Jonathon Coleman expressing your concerns at the Ministry’s proposals.
Contact your local MP (whatever Party) and express your concerns. You can find their details by clicking here.  

List of all NZ MP's

Please Act Now. The Charter is working on this now and we need your help too. The bigger the voice, the better our influence, the better the outcome.