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Hospitals to vie for $1.8bn fund

THROWING open $1.8 billion for hospital spending is expected to unleash a chorus of demands for money from struggling hospitals around Australia.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard yesterday undertook to accelerate an initial $100 million grant to begin work on upgrading the Royal Hobart Hospital in response to demands from Tasmanian independent MP Andrew Wilkie.

But other communities, such as Wagga Wagga, which has been pleading for 30 years for a new hospital, are likely to step up their demands for equal treatment.

Mr Wilkie said Ms Gillard had promised ''to open a new round of monies'' from the Labor government's health and hospital fund, established in January 2009 to finance hospital and other health facilities, on the advice of a special advisory board.

Ms Gillard said applications for funding would be called for and the allocation of funding would be subject to expert assessment. The $1.8 billion in spending would be offset by other savings so the government can still meet its pledge to bring down a budget surplus in 2013.

Mr Wilkie said the $1.8 billion in the fund that was not to have been released ''any time soon will now be released and applicants can now seek money for their own hospitals''.

Of that, $340 million would go to the Tasmanian government to refurbish Royal Hobart Hospital, he said. Ms Gillard said the federal government would ''look to meet'' 60 per cent of the estimated $565 million cost of the Royal Hobart redevelopment and had promised to make $100 million available immediately.

The Australian Healthcare and Hospitals Association, representing more than 700 public hospitals, last night warned against the $1.8 billion ''being divvied up among marginal seats''. The association's executive director, Prue Power, said: ''The injection of funds is necessary, but we will need to ensure it is spent in the most appropriate way.''

The Australian Medical Association's Tasmanian president, Michael Aizen, said the 1950s-era core of the Royal Hobart had been added to piecemeal over the years, making access to services and patient movements difficult.

''Our preference always was for a new greenfields project,'' Dr Aizen said.

''But we are always pleased when significant funding is made available for the Royal.''

With ANDREW DARBY


Source: The Age

http://www.smh.com.au/federal-election/hospitals-to-vie-for-18bn-fund-20100902-14ro2.html