Speeches and Transcripts

AMA Transcript - Public Hospital Funding

Transcript: AMA President, Professor Brian Owler, 774 ABC, 10 March 2016
Subject: Public Hospital Funding


RAFAEL EPSTEIN:           Brian Owler is the Federal President of the AMA as we hit 19 minutes past five o'clock. Brian Owler good afternoon.
BRIAN OWLER:     Good afternoon.
RAFAEL EPSTEIN: Accounting errors and disagreements aside, can you solve an agreement around that $70 million, and not have an impact on patients in Victoria, do you think?
BRIAN OWLER:     No, you can't. And I think what it represents is that the States all around the country, and the Territories, are desperate for funding. They're looking at 2017 when the change in funding comes into effect, and they know they need every dollar. And certainly $73 million, as you pointed out, provides a lot of patient services, and so to take that money away, of course, there are services that won't be able to be offered to some patients.
RAFAEL EPSTEIN: Is the Minister right, only Victoria's kicking up a fuss about this one?
BRIAN OWLER:     Well only Victoria's got this particular problem at the moment, but I can tell you that all States and Territories are very worried about these cuts that are in the pipeline. Now, as you pointed out, they are clearly in the budget papers, the $80 billion from over the ten years is in the budget papers, including $57 billion for health. So there's no doubt that those cuts are there in black and white.
RAFAEL EPSTEIN:           Do you think it's a priority for the Coalition to increase the figures beyond the rate of inflation? To increase the health funding increase beyond that, which they've already said they'd do?
BRIAN OWLER:     I think the priority at the moment is to get some sort of deal to make the states be quiet while there's a Federal election campaign underway. We know that there's this figure of $6.7 billion for health and education for every State and Territory in total, and that's over a four year period. That's the figure that's being talked about at the moment, which is woefully inadequate. And so, you know, it's cutting some sort of short sighted deal just to appease the States when you know that this sort of funding cut is going to have a real effect on patients and the ability to provide care for them. You know I don't think that's... that's the way forward.
RAFAEL EPSTEIN: Brian Owler, president of the AMA, thank you.
BRIAN OWLER:     Thank you.


11 March 2016
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