Qld election 2024: Shannon Fentiman spruiks health plan
Health Minister Shannon Fentiman has spruiked billions in spending on hospitals, despite one still being an excavation site.
QLD News
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Labor will splash billions of dollars on new health facilities and extra beds, as the state’s largest hospital and health service warns a lack of funding to maintain ageing assets could affect clinical services.
The state government on Monday pledged 2500 new hospital beds as part of its existing $14bn building program for new and extended hospitals.
However Metro North Hospital and Health Service has used its annual report to warn ageing infrastructure and inadequate funding could lead to an increasing liability on its buildings, resulting in impacts on clinical service delivery.
The state government allocated $215m under its Sustaining Capital Fund in this year’s budget to maintain existing health infrastructure.
That was $131.5m lower than in the previous financial year, when the government allocated $346.5m to the upkeep of hospital and health facilities.
Health Minister Shannon Fentiman, visiting the site of the new Bundaberg Hospital, said the fund was regularly oversubscribed.
“The sustaining capital is something where hospital and health services then reapply for money,” she said.
“It has always been bigger than what is forecasting for budget and we have explained that at length.”
Responding to concerns raised by the Metro North Hospital and Health Service, Ms Fentiman said any call for cash would be provided by the state government.
“We always continue to make sure that our hospitals have the maintenance that they need, and we will always make sure they have the beds that they need unlike the LNP,” she said.
“If there are maintenance requests, we absolutely work with them to fund it.
“This is about, how do we continue to make sure we can provide great care close to home with the huge demand we are seeing, you have to invest in primary care.
“You need the beds. You need the frontline staff that do the wonderful work.”
Metro North Hospital and Health Service noted its investment in care grew from $4bn in 2022-23 to $4.32bn in 2023-24.
Bundaberg’s new $1.2bn hospital remains on track to be open in mid-2027, despite the site remaining excavated dirt during Ms Fentiman’s campaign visit alongside Premier Steven Miles on Monday.
“Did you not see all of those trucks? … Earthworks is a big part of construction,” Ms Fentiman said.
“Over the next month the contractors were just telling us things are really going to ramp up … you will see this hospital come from the ground.”
Originally published as Qld election 2024: Shannon Fentiman spruiks health plan
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