Calvary takeover ‘faith agnostic’, says ACT health minister

Rachel Stephen-Smith rejects accusations the hospital takeover was motivated by religion while conceding some procedures had not been available at the formerly Catholic-run facility.

ACT Health Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith. Picture: Julia Kanapathippillai

ACT Health Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith says the Labor-Greens government’s decision to forcibly acquire Calvary Hospital was “faith agnostic” while conceding that some procedures had not been available at the formerly Catholic-run facility for “obvious reasons”.

Ms Stephen-Smith told a senate inquiry probing the acquisition the ACT government had begun drafting legislation to take over the Canberra hospital in March, two months before the controversial acquisition was announced.

The ACT government unveiled plans to forcibly acquire the hospital in north Canberra by ramming legislation – introduced on May 10 – through the Legislative Assembly to enable the transfer, which took place in July.

Ms Stephen-Smith also responded to accusations from religious leaders that the takeover was motivated by faith-based reasons, after the hospital was criticised by an ACT parliamentary committee for its reluctance to offer abortions.

“I would note that the only people discussing these straw man issues such as abortion and voluntary assisted dying have been those opposed to the acquisition,” she said. “The government has never made such claims or links.”

However, Ms Stephen-Smith conceded that some procedures which had not been available when the hospital was operated by a Catholic provider were now available at the now Canberra Health Services run facility.

“Examples of those services that are now available are post-partum advice on contraception and access to contraception,” she said.

“Access to tubal ligation for a person who is having a caesarean section, so that means one operation to have a caesarean section and then to have your tubes tied if you choose to do that in the same operation, something that previously was not available at Calvary Public Hospital Bruce, for obvious reasons.

“And of course access to the morning after pill for people who have experienced rape and were concerned about an unwanted pregnancy was previously not available at Calvary Public Hospital Bruce and would now be available through North Canberra Hospital.”

The senate committee examining a bill, introduced by Nationals Senator Matt Canavan, designed to compel the ACT government to hold its own inquiry into the Calvary acquisition also heard that hospital staff had been given three days to decide if they wanted to take a redundancy as part of the takeover.

Ms Stephen-Smith said the decision to acquire Calvary was motivated by a desire to deliver “co-ordinated care between Canberra Hospital and the new north-side hospital”.

“I want to emphasise, as we have repeatedly, that this decision was not about that. This decision was faith agnostic,” she said.

“It was about ensuring that we could build a new billion dollar hospital on land that was owned by the ACT government so that the hospital would be owned by the taxpayers of the ACT, not a private organisation.”

Calvary national director people and corporate services Kerryn Vine-Camp accused the ACT government of avoiding democratic processes and acting in a “clandestine” manner to avoid parliamentary scrutiny.

“Calvary was working with the territory in good faith, investing time and money to deliver a new hospital for Canberrans on the north side, without knowledge of the territory‘s alternative agenda,” she said.

“The territory abruptly ceased communicating with Calvary for at least five months before we were summoned to a meeting with the health minister.

“On May 8 2023. To notify us of the territories intention to introduce on May 10 the Health Infrastructure Enabling Bill to enable acquisition and transition of a major public teaching hospital with more than 1800 staff by July 3.”