The Ministry of Health and the Health Research Council of New Zealand funded Te Rōpū Rangahau Hauora a Eru Pōmare (University of Otago, Wellington) and seven community group partners to identify research priorities that would lead to improved oral health for Māori and reduced inequalities, with particular reference to low income Māori adults, older Māori, and Māori with disabilities, special needs or who are medically compromised.
Good oral health is not equally available to all citizens of Aotearoa. Dental services for adults remain largely outside the system of publicly funded or subsidised health care. Preventive, restorative, or rehabilitative dental care is accessible to the affluent but often unattainable to those who are less well-off.