9 Nov 2026: Frontierer
New Zealand is experiencing some of the highest projected medical cost inflation in the Asia-Pacific region. Workforce constraints, rising operating costs, pressure on public healthcare capacity, demand for advanced diagnostics and increasing use of private services are creating greater financial exposure for international payers.
According to Aon’s 2025 Global Medical Trend Rates Report, New Zealand’s gross medical trend rate rose from 7.4% in 2024 to 14.5% in 2025, placing it among the highest in the Asia-Pacific region. WTW subsequently projected a 14.9% gross medical trend rate for New Zealand in 2026, compared with an Asia-Pacific average of 14.0%.
These figures represent projected increases in medical-plan costs, rather than a uniform increase in the price of every medial service, consultation or diagnostic test. Nevertheless, they signal substantial and sustained cost pressure across New Zealand’s healthcare system, with particular relevance to private treatment, diagnostics and international health insurance claims.
For international visitors, the financial consequences can be significant. Most visitor-visa holders are not generally eligible for publicly funded healthcare and may need to meet the full cost of treatment in either public or private facilities. Important exceptions apply: visitors injured in accidents in New Zealand may be eligible for ACC cover, while Australian and UK visitors may receive limited publicly funded treatment under reciprocal health agreements.
What is driving cost inflation
Several structural factors are contributing to rising private medical expenditure in New Zealand.
Workforce shortages
New Zealand has long faced challenges recruiting and retaining doctors, nurses, allied-health professionals and technical staff. Its relatively small population—approximately 5.3 million—limits the domestic recruitment pool, while healthcare remains highly labour-intensive and dependent on specialised skills.
Hospitals, general and specialist practices and diagnostic facilities compete for scarce doctors, nurses, radiologists, radiographers and other allied health staff. Workforce constraints can increase salary costs, reliance on locum or agency staffing, recruitment expenditure and operational complexity.
Increasing operating costs
Private providers also face rising expenses relating to medical supplies, equipment, maintenance, insurance, administration, regulatory compliance and facilities. These pressures can flow through to the prices charged to self-paying patients and insurers.
Pressure on public healthcare
New Zealand’s public system faces sustained demand pressures, including workforce shortages, capacity constraints and waiting times for some specialist assessments and elective procedures. As access to publicly funded services becomes more constrained, some patients seek private specialists, urgent care, imaging and surgical services.
Greater private utilisation does not automatically mean that every private fee has risen. However, sustained demand can place upward pressure on prices where specialist capacity, theatre access or diagnostic equipment cannot expand at the same rate. For international visitors needing timely assessment or treatment, private providers may often be the most practical option.
Diagnostic imaging: a material cost exposure
Advanced diagnostic imaging is a particularly relevant cost exposure for international payers. AIA’s health claims data, current as at 30 April 2026, provide the following indicative private diagnostic costs:
Diagnostic investigation & Indicative cost (NZD)
Ultrasound: $350–$850
CT scan: $700–$2,500
MRI scan: $1,700–$4,000
PET scan: $3,000–$6,000
Actual charges depend on the body region examined, clinical complexity, imaging protocol, provider and the location of the imaging facility. These figures illustrate that diagnostic investigations can represent a high material share of a claim before specialist consultations, emergency department charges or hospital admission costs are added.
Are CT and MRI prices increasing?
There is evidence of rising expenditure on advanced diagnostic imaging, but reliable national data measuring annual changes in private CT and MRI prices remain limited. This distinction matters: increased imaging expenditure may reflect higher prices per scan, greater scan volumes, more complex investigations, or a combination of all three.
It would therefore be inaccurate to infer that a 14.5% national medical trend rate means CT or MRI prices have increased by the same percentage. Even so, high unit costs and growing demand for diagnostics are likely to remain an important driver of insurer claim expenditure.
Limited pricing transparency
Private radiology pricing in New Zealand is not consistently published in standardised national fee schedules. Insurers commonly need to request quotations, while prices can vary by location, examination type and provider.
This lack of transparent, comparable pricing makes it difficult for payers to assess value or benchmark claims. For insurers, the practical issue is whether competitive and transparent provider pricing is available across regions.
Consolidation and market structure
The private diagnostic-imaging sector has attracted corporate investment and consolidation, with larger operators developing networks of clinics and imaging facilities. Consolidation may support investment in equipment, broader geographic coverage, and operational efficiency, which has been seen in New Zealand in recent years.
However, greater market concentration can also affect pricing power, particularly in regions where patients and referrers have limited alternatives. The extent to which consolidation has directly contributed to imaging-price inflation in New Zealand has not been conclusively quantified.
Advancing technology and pharmaceuticals
Modern healthcare increasingly relies on advanced diagnostic and treatment technologies. High-end CT and MRI scanners, minimally invasive surgical equipment and specialised clinical systems require substantial capital investment, maintenance and technical support.
These technologies can improve diagnostic accuracy, clinical outcomes and efficiency, but they may also increase the cost of individual services. This is less directly relevant to short-term visitor claims, but it can be important for managing costs under international private medical insurance (IPMI) programmes.
Specialised pharmaceuticals, including newer oncology treatments and biologic medicines, add a further source of expenditure growth. PHARMAC subsidises eligible medicines for eligible patients, but many international visitors will not qualify for those subsidies and may face substantial out-of-pocket costs for treatments.
Conclusion
New Zealand’s rising medical trend rates reflect a combination of workforce shortages, operating-cost pressures, public-system capacity limits, diagnostic demand and continued investment in advanced care. While the 14.5% Aon figure and 14.9% WTW projection are insurance-cost trends rather than direct measures of individual service-price inflation, both point to a challenging cost environment for insurers, international employers and visitors.
For international payers, the most material exposures are likely to be private specialist care, advanced imaging and medicines outside publicly funded arrangements. ACC and reciprocal health agreements may reduce costs in defined circumstances, but they do not provide comprehensive coverage for illness or all treatment needs. Comprehensive insurance, clear eligibility rules, provider pricing information and active management of diagnostic and hospital claims will therefore be increasingly important for controlling financial exposure in New Zealand.