Upgrades may be more important than new builds - in a Government unveil on long term plans for health infrastructure

The Health Minister's laid out a pipeline for renewal and expansion - at a cost of 20 billion dollars.

Simeon Brown says the average age of public health buildings is about 47 years.

But Health NZ Infrastructure Planning and Investment Head, Aaron Matthews, says older buildings aren't always a bad thing.

He says even countries with very old buildings have higher standards of care because of regular upgrades.