| Publication: | news.com.au |
|---|---|
| Date: | 20 April 2010 |
| Section: | Money & Me |
By Malcolm Farr
YESTERDAY'S historic health deal will finally make the Federal Government, rather than the states, the major funder of public hospitals.
At the moment, the Federal Government provides about 35 per cent of hospital funding and the states most of the remainder.
But on July 1 the new funding agreement will be ushered in, funnelling federal funds into state healthcare systems. The GST revenue paid to the states is increasing by only about 8 per cent a year.
What's the deal
- SCHEDULED to take effect from July 1 2010;
- THE Federal Government will establish a single, national network of hospitals which will be funded by the Commonwealth but run locally;
- THE Federal Government will assume 60 per cent of funding responsibility for public hospitals;
- IT WILL take back one-third of GST revenue and invest it directly in health programs and hospitals rather than the current arrangement of paying this revenue to state and territory governments;
- THE funds will be pooled in a new National Hospitals Fund and the Commonwealth will dole out money to a "payment authority" in each state and territory;
- THE state and territory governments will also pay their 40 per cent of funding to these same payment authorities which will deliver the funds to local hospital networks directly;
- HOSPITALS will be paid according to performance;
- THE Federal Government will take over all funding for primary (including GP) care and aged care.
What is promised under the scheme
- A TOTAL of 1300 new sub-acute hospital beds;
- AN extra 2500 aged-care beds;
- A TOTAL of 6000 new doctors;
- REDUCING emergency waiting times to no longer than four hours;
- DELIVERING elective surgery on time in 95 per cent of cases;
- MENTAL health services for an extra 20,000 young people.
What the states and territories get
- NSW: $1.6 billion in the next 10 years, including $1.2 billion for the first four years of the agreement, with the guarantee of $4.9 billion guaranteed funding for growth in health costs after 2014;
- QUEENSLAND: $4 billion for Queensland to deliver more emergency rooms, elective surgery, new hospital beds, mental health services and aged care;
- ACT: Extra $150 million a year;
- VICTORIA: $890 million over three years;
- WA: Not signed on yet - is debating the GST component - but will continue talks with the Rudd Government.
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