The Rudd Government this week announced the biggest change to Australia’s health and hospital system since the introduction of Medicare.

Chris Hayes, Federal Member for Werriwa, said that the Government will deliver better health services and better hospitals by establishing a National Health and Hospitals Network.

Mr Hayes said “These reforms represent the biggest changes to Australia’s health and hospital system since the introduction of Medicare”.  

1. A National Network: to bring together eight State run systems with one set of tough national standards to deliver better hospital services. 
 
2. Funded nationally: with the Australian Government taking on the dominant funding responsibility for the hospital system the Australian Government will end the blame game, eliminate waste and shoulder the burden of funding to meet rapidly rising health costs. 
 
3. Run locally: through Local Hospital Networks which will bring together small groups of hospitals, where local professionals with local knowledge are given the necessary powers to deliver hospital services to our community.

These changes will be achieved by the Commonwealth taking the following actions:

• Taking 60 per cent of funding responsibility for public hospitals;
• Taking over full responsibility for GP and primary health care services;
• Establish Local Hospital Networks run by health and financial professionals to be responsible for running their local hospitals, rather than central bureaucracies;
• Paying Local Hospital Networks directly for each hospital service they deliver, rather than just handing over block funding grants to the states; and
• Bringing fragmented health and hospital services together under a single National Health and Hospitals Network, through strong transparent national reporting.  

These reforms are being put to the States and Territories for their agreement at the COAG meeting to be held on 11 April 2010. 

If the states and territories do not agree to these reforms, the Government will take its plan to the people to get a mandate for these important changes, to give the Government the ability to accept full funding responsibility for the entire health and hospitals system in the future.  

Over the coming weeks and months, the Rudd Government will make further announcements about important investments in more doctors and nurses, increasing the availability of hospital beds, improving GP services, and about introducing personally-controlled electronic health records.

“Local people have consistently told me how important it was for all governments to get on with the job of improving the health system” said Mr Hayes.

 “The establishment of the National Health and Hospitals Network builds on record investments in health and hospitals made by the Rudd Government over the last two years, including a 50 per cent increase in hospital funding, increasing GP training places by 35% and training more nurses.”

“The Rudd Government’s action stands in contrast to the Liberals who in 12 years of office ripped $1 billion from our hospital system when they were in Government, capped GP training places and ignored the shortage of nurses in our community.” 

“I will be visiting both Campbelltown and Liverpool Hospitals in the coming weeks to discuss various proposals with local hospital staff and health providers” said Mr Hayes.

Photo: Chris Hayes MP with Health Minister the Hon Nicola Roxon at a recent visit to Campbelltown Hospital.