The Australian Government is playing its part to ensure residents have a public health system they can rely on.
On Friday, the Commonwealth and State and Territory Governments signed a $131 billion five-year hospitals agreement which will deliver more doctors and nurses in public hospitals across the country.
Federal Member for Cowper Pat Conaghan welcomed the five-year agreement as it is important the health system remains stable and continues to deliver the services residents in Cowper rely on.
“A total of 24.4 per cent of residents in Cowper are over the age of 65, so having dependable health services at our area’s six public hospitals is really important,” he said.
“As part of this agreement, the Morrison-McCormack Government has provided a funding guarantee to all States and Territories that no jurisdiction will be left worse off as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“States are also being funded to deliver more flexible care options, including hospital care in the home, to give patients care where and when they need it. This will include rehabilitation after a stroke in the home, which provides better long-term outcomes for patients.
“I thank the Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Minister for Health Greg Hunt for partnering with the States and Territories to deliver the 2020-25 National Health Reform Agreement.”
Overall, the Commonwealth will invest an estimated $131.4 billion in demand driven public hospital funding to improve health outcomes for all Australians and ensure the sustainability of our health system now and into the future.
The new 2020 25 National Health Reform Agreement provides an estimated $31.4 billion in additional funding to public hospitals over five years from 2020–21. This is in addition to the over $8 billion health investment by the Commonwealth during the COVID-19 response.
The Australian Government funding contribution for public hospital services in New South Wales is estimated to grow substantially to an estimated $40.1 billion over the next five years, delivering an additional $9.3 billion in funding.
New funding arrangements under the Agreement mean people with some of the rarest conditions will have better access to new innovative life-saving high-cost therapies in public hospitals around the country, such as a small number of very sick children receiving lifesaving high cost therapies like immunotherapy.
Importantly, the Agreement strengthens all governments’ commitment to ensuring equitable access to public hospitals for all Australians by removing incentives that can lead to the preferential treatment of private patients.
The new Agreement also includes a commitment by all Australian governments to a shared long-term vision for health reform, at a time when shared investment and coordination in health has never been more important.
