A vicious stoush has erupted over hospital funding, with federal Labor claiming the government is cutting funds to the state’s most vulnerable, and in turn being accused of scaremongering.
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Member for Eden-Monaro Mike Kelly said $2.2 million is being cut from the electorate’s public hospitals by the federal Liberal government. That figure relates to a Commonwealth deal reportedly signed by NSW, but which Opposition Leader Bill Shorten has warned amounts to a “$715 million cut” to hospitals across the country from 2017-2020.
Dr Kelly said the cuts were indicative of Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s priorities.
“When the original decision was made to cut health funding, we [Labor] implemented the Health and Hospitals Fund to instead put in place better discipline around activities, and huge investment in preventative health to lessen the strain on the public hospital system into the future,” Dr Kelly said. “The Liberals got in and tore that agreement up, and we’ve seen a steady roll out cost cutting measures since.
However, Liberal Senator for NSW Jim Molan said while he “would not go so far as to say that one of my Parliamentary colleagues is lying...this is scaremongering at its worst”.
“The truth is that federal funding for public hospital services under the Coalition has increased from $13.8billion in 2013-14 to a record $22.7billion in 2020-21 – that is a 64 per cent increase,” Senator Molan said.
Eden-Monaro cut
- South East Regional Hospital – $990,000
- Queanbeyan Hospital – $470,000
- Cooma Hospital – $270,000
- Tumut District Hospital – $90,000
- Yass District Hospital – $90,000
- Pambula Hospital – $60,000
- Braidwood Multi-Purpose Health Service – $60,000
- Bombala Hospital – $50,000
- Tumbarumba MPS – $50,000
- Batlow/Adelong MPS – $40,000
- Delegate MPS – $30,000