Early build for new Mount Barker hospital after government brings forward funding
Work will start early on a promised $220m new hospital in Mount Barker after the government brought forward millions in funding.
Adelaide Hills
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The government has brought forward funding to the new Mount Barker hospital development by $32m after Wednesday’s state budget.
During the election campaign, the Labor government promised $220m for a new, bigger hospital with $95m of the total cost committed to in the four-year term of the government.
The remaining funds would be allocated by 2026/27. On Friday it announced the $95m would be increased to $127m.
Premier Peter Malinauskas said it meant work could begin sooner to provide a much-needed reprieve to the strained Mount Barker health system.
Despite the project being fully funded, Health Minster Chris Picton was not able to provide an expected ready date.
The new hospital is set to have 102 beds compared with the current hospital’s 34 to meet the quickly growing population.
The government anticipated the new hospital would not only provide relief to the Mount Barker region but also to the city hospitals.
Inpatient doctor at the Mount Barker hospital, Rohan Williams, said the hospital was currently only capable of admitting a third of the region’s population, leaving two thirds to seek medical attention at the city’s hospitals.
The Mount Barker region is home to around 37,000 people and its population is expected to exceed 56,000 within 15 years.
Mr Malinauskas said the government’s health investments would look beyond the political timeline.
“We made it clear that it was our determination, our firm focus to not focus on an election policy that was going to sort us out for the next couple of years, but instead set us up for the long term,” he said.
When in opposition, Labor promised a new 24/7 ambulance station for Mount Barker, and another one in Strathalbyn from 2025.
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