Hospital Funding Boost Starts to Pay Dividends

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29 April 2011

Labor’s 50 per cent boost to hospital funding in 2008 is starting to pay dividends as 378 new public hospital beds opened and record numbers of patients were treated in emergency departments and had elective surgery in 2009-10 according to a new report released today.

Welcoming the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare report, Minister for Health and Ageing Nicola Roxon said the improvements were a strong sign the Government’s 2008 $20 billion injection over four years into state hospitals was paying dividends.

“Helping Australia’s hospital system to recover from the dark days of the Howard-Abbott years was a daunting task for Labor when we came to Government in 2007. The relationship between Mr Abbott and his state colleagues was on shaky ground with consistent underfunding from the Commonwealth,” Minister Roxon said.

“We prioritised productive relationships with the states and have always been determined to give hospitals the resources they need for more beds and better care.

“The evidence is now starting to roll in that patients and hospitals are benefiting from our $20 billion hospital funding injection in 2008, which is being delivered to hospitals over four years.

“This report shows now, more than ever before, more patients are being treated in our hospitals by record numbers of doctors and nurses in more hospital beds.”

Minister Roxon also noted that demand for hospital services continues to grow with the number of elective surgery operations in the public system increasing by 2.4 per cent and the number of presentations at public hospital emergency departments increasing by 3.1 per cent in the last year.

“For the first time ever there has been over 600,000 elective surgery operations in the public system, thanks to Labor’s funding boost. If Mr Abbott had still been Health Minister, this increase in elective surgery operations would not have taken place and Australians would be waiting even longer,” Minister Roxon said.

“The continued pressure on our hospitals emphasises the importance of COAG national health reform as the Commonwealth will increase its share of efficient hospital growth costs to 50 per cent from 2017.

“As our 2008 investments continue to roll out, combined with our new $20 billion of COAG national health reform investments, patients will continue to see their local hospitals as better funded, better run and more sustainable.”

Hospital information on the new MyHospitals website has now been updated using data collected for Australian Hospital Statistics 2009-10 and Australian Hospitals 2009-10.

For all media inquiries, please contact the Minister's Office on 02 6277 7220