Emergency departments across the country will receive a $20-million funding boost to increase frontline staffing over the next nine months

Health Minister Simeon Brown says the initiative will be funded from Health New Zealand's baseline, as part of its more than $1-billion annual uplift.

He says under the Labour Government, ED performance fell from 89-percent in 2017 to less than 68-percent in 2023.

Mr Brown says performance is already improving, and this funding boost will help to relieve even more pressure on hospitals.