Oranga Tamariki Act 1989

Care and protection of children and young persons - Agreements for care of children and young persons

149: Agreement may provide for consent to medical treatment

You could also call this:

"Who can agree to medical treatment for you when you're in care"

Illustration for Oranga Tamariki Act 1989

When you are in care, the person looking after you might need to make decisions about your medical treatment. They can agree to medical, surgical, or dental procedures for you, including blood transfusions. This means they are like a guardian for you, as stated in section 36(3) of the Care of Children Act 2004.

The person looking after you gets this authority from an agreement made under section 139 or section 140. This agreement says they can make decisions about your medical treatment. They have to act in your best interests when making these decisions.

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This page was last updated on 25 May 2025

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM151050.

Topics:

Health and wellbeing > Healthcare servicesFamily and relationships > Children and parentingFamily and relationships > Adoption and guardianship

148: Effect of agreements, or

"What happens when someone looks after you because of a care agreement"

150: Jurisdiction of Family Court, or

"The Family Court makes decisions about certain child and family cases."

Part 2Care and protection of children and young persons
Agreements for care of children and young persons

149Agreement may provide for consent to medical treatment

Any agreement entered into under section 139 or section 140 may authorise the person in whose care a child or young person is placed pursuant to that agreement to consent to the carrying out, on that child or young person, of any medical, surgical, or dental procedure (including a blood transfusion), and where any person is so authorised that person shall be deemed to be a guardian of the child or young person for the purposes of section 36(3) of the Care of Children Act 2004.

Notes

Section 149: amended, on 1 July 2019, by section 83 of the Children, Young Persons, and Their Families (Oranga Tamariki) Legislation Act 2017 (2017 No 31).
Section 149: amended, on 1 July 2005, by section 151 of the Care of Children Act 2004 (2004 No 90).