Private health agreement activated by federal government, to allow 100k extra staff and 57k nurses to help in Covid fight

More than 100,000 extra staff and up to 57,000 nurses will be made available to overwhelmed health systems across the country after Health Minister Greg Hunt confirmed the federal government will do something Queensland did more than a week ago.

More than 100,000 extra staff and up to 57,000 nurses will be made available to overwhelmed health systems across the country after the federal government activated an agreement with the private sector.

Health Minister Greg Hunt confirmed on Tuesday the government had called in the agreement struck with the private health sector at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, something Queensland did more than a week ago.

“(With) the private hospitals agreement, we’ll see up to 57,000 nurses and over 100,000 staff made available to Omicron affected areas around the country,” he said.

Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt. Picture: NCA NewsWire/ David Crosling

“So it’s a workforce which is skilled plan, appropriate payment available. The states and territories will where necessary work directly with the staff and with the hospitals themselves.

“Whether it’s the large private hospital networks or the smaller private hospitals, it’ll be up to the states and territories to activate those.

“But we have activated at the Commonwealth end and that will mean there will also be assistance available where necessary in any aged care facilities that require that additional workforce.”

Queensland Health Minister Yvette D’Ath on January 9 said the state government would be activating arrangements to secure staffed beds from private hospitals to boost capacity, with the numbers to ramp up over time.

This will allow Queensland Health to move public patients into the private hospital system to free up capacity so it can deal with more Covid-19 patients.

The maximum number of beds Queensland Health could commandeer through the arrangement would be between 5000 and 6000 spread across 47 private hospitals Ms D’Ath said.

By January 15, more than 600 beds had already been secured.

Originally published as Private health agreement activated by federal government, to allow 100k extra staff and 57k nurses to help in Covid fight