Kia ora,

I am making this Official Information Act request as part of ADHDInquiryNZ, a grassroots, unfunded, and non-partisan volunteer initiative supporting a public petition calling for a Parliamentary inquiry into systemic harm to people with ADHD in Aotearoa. This request seeks clarity on ownership, governance, classification, and the planned operational rollout of the New Zealand Clinical Principles Framework for ADHD (2025), including implementation, resourcing, workforce development, commissioning, and monitoring. Information gathered from this and related requests will help identify system-wide patterns and will be provided to the Petitions Committee when the petition period closes.

Please treat this as a request for official information under the OIA. I understand the agency’s obligation to assist under s 13 and that a decision should be made within 20 working days of receipt (and any transfer must occur within 10 working days). If any part of this request requires clarification, please let me know no later than 5 working days from receipt. This request is confined to information held by Manatū Hauora; please do not transfer for commentary.

This request focuses specifically on the New Zealand Clinical Principles Framework for ADHD (2025) and the associated February 2026 prescribing changes, rather than general ADHD policy, data, or rights obligations covered in earlier requests.

Timeframe: This request covers the period from 1 January 2022 to the date this request is received.

1. Ownership, stewardship, and classification

A. Ownership and responsibility
Please confirm which agency holds ownership, stewardship, or responsibility for the ADHD Clinical Principles Framework (2025), including responsibility for implementation, rollout, updating, governance, and monitoring.

If responsibility for any function has been assigned to another agency, please provide the documents recording that assignment and name the responsible agency.

B. Classification of the document
Please confirm whether the Framework has been formally classified as any of the following:
-a clinical guideline
-a national standard
-a mandated service-delivery requirement
-a commissioning specification
-an operational protocol
-an advisory document
-a non-binding clinical framework

If no formal classification exists, or if the document is considered non-binding, please confirm this.

C. Approval and authority
Please provide any documents describing who had authority to approve, endorse, or finalise the Framework on behalf of Manatū Hauora.

If no such documents exist, please confirm this.

2. Governance of the Clinical Reference Group (CRG)
Please provide:
a. Any terms of reference, governance diagrams, role descriptions, or internal instructions describing the Ministry’s role in convening, supporting, overseeing, or approving the CRG.
b. Any documents describing how members were selected, including criteria, invitations, acceptances, and any records of groups or individuals who were identified but not approached.
c. Any documents describing decision-making processes within the CRG (e.g., consensus, majority, clinical lead sign-off).
d. Any records noting identified gaps in Māori, Pacific, Rainbow+/Takatāpui, or lived-experience representation.

If no such documents exist, please confirm this.

3. Implementation planning and the February 2026 rollout
Please provide any documents, project plans, timelines, briefs, internal advice, scoping documents, or communications describing how the Framework is intended to be implemented or operationalised as part of the February 2026 ADHD prescribing changes.

This includes any documents discussing:
-expectations for sector behaviour change
-planned implementation phases
-risks, barriers, or dependencies
-whether implementation is mandatory or optional
-any decisions that rollout activity will be symbolic or guidance-only

If no such documents exist, please confirm this.

4. Commissioning, service delivery, and expectations for Te Whatu Ora
Please provide any documents describing:
-planned or proposed changes to ADHD service delivery
-commissioning plans or service specifications for ADHD care in primary or specialist settings
-instructions, expectations, or requests provided to Te Whatu Ora regarding implementation
-any agreements, memoranda, or handovers between Manatū Hauora and Te Whatu Ora relating to the Framework
-any impacts on GP, PHO, NGO, or specialist roles

If no such documents exist, please confirm this.

5. Workforce development, training, and capability
Please provide any documents describing:
-training or capability-building for GPs, nurses, psychologists, or allied health
-any planned or implemented professional development related to ADHD assessment or treatment
-supervision structures, escalation pathways, or safety standards
-cultural-safety expectations relating to Māori, Pacific, or Rainbow+/Takatāpui populations

If no such documents exist, please confirm this.

6. GP competence: determination, verification, and support
Please provide any documents, advice, internal correspondence, or planning materials describing how general practitioner competence to assess, diagnose, or manage ADHD will be determined, verified, supported, or monitored as part of the February 2026 changes.

This includes any documents that:
-define or describe the expected competencies for GPs
-outline any training, credentialing, or verification requirements
-discuss how competence will be assessed prior to prescribing
-address medicolegal or safety considerations relating to competence
-assign responsibility for determining or overseeing GP competence
-note any gaps, risks, or limitations in current competence systems

If any part of competence determination has been assigned to another agency, please provide the documents recording that assignment and name the responsible agency.

If no such documents exist, please confirm this.

7. Funding, resourcing, and budget considerations
Please provide any documents that describe or quantify:
-funding allocated for the rollout or implementation of the Framework
-any business cases, budget bids, financial planning, or cost modelling
-any financial risk assessments
-any funding provided to Te Whatu Ora, PHOs, NGOs, or other providers relating to implementation

If no such documents exist, please confirm this.

8. Monitoring, evaluation, and equity accountability
Please provide any documents describing:
-how the February 2026 rollout will be monitored or evaluated
-any proposed indicators, KPIs, or outcomes measures
-any plans to track ADHD service delivery or outcomes through national datasets or the IDI
-any equity monitoring (including for Māori, Pacific, Rainbow+/Takatāpui populations)
-any internal assessments of system impact, risk, or inequity

If no such documents exist, please confirm this.

9. Communications, engagement, and public messaging
Please provide any internal or external communications, media lines, stakeholder briefs, sector updates, or messaging plans relating to:
-the February 2026 rollout
-how the Framework will be communicated to clinicians, PHOs, Te Whatu Ora, NGOs, or the public
-any statements describing expected changes to ADHD care

If no such documents exist, please confirm this.

10. Absence of information
If Manatū Hauora does not hold:
-an implementation plan
-a commissioning plan
-a service specification
-a workforce or training plan
-monitoring or evaluation documentation
-funding documentation
-a communications plan
-or any documents assigning responsibility
please confirm this.

If any part of implementation has been deferred, deprioritised, or is still under development, please confirm this also.

Ngā mihi,
Elspeth Baker-Vevers

Kia ora Rosie,

Thank you for your message. At this stage, I am not seeking a meeting. My preference is for the request to be responded to in writing, in line with the Official Information Act.

OIA 35 seeks documents held by Manatū Hauora relating to ownership, governance, approval, implementation, commissioning, workforce capability, funding, monitoring, and communications for the ADHD Clinical Principles Framework (2025), or confirmation where such documents do not exist. I am not requesting commentary or explanation beyond what is already recorded.

If, during processing, the Ministry considers that any specific part of the request lacks clarity, I am happy to respond to a written clarification request under section 13. Otherwise, I am comfortable for the Ministry to proceed with the response as acknowledged on 3 December 2025.

Ngā mihi,
Elspeth