Our $25 million commitment is part of Labor’s Fair Go Action Plan to protect Medicare and fix our hospitals, and is on top of a $175 million commitment by the NSW Labor Opposition, because only Labor – state and federal – can be trusted to fix NSW hospitals.
People in the Eurobodalla Shire – from South Durras to Tilba Tilba – deserve the same access to vital hospital care as people in Sydney and larger regions.
But thanks to the Liberals’ cuts and neglect, Eurobodalla hospital services have been downgraded and patients are forced to travel hours for basic procedures.
Scott Morrison is cutting $5.3 million from Southern NSW hospitals between 2017 and 2020 – equivalent to almost 8,000 emergency department visits or 13,000 outpatient appointments.
Federal Labor’s $25 million investment will go towards:
- A state of the art emergency department
- Operating theatres
- Maternity and paediatric services
- Pathology services
- Radiology services including X-ray, ultrasound and CT scanning
- Palliative care
- A helipad
- Up to 20 mental health beds
- Community drug and alcohol services
- A rehabilitation unit
Labor will consult extensively with the Eurobodalla community to determine the best site for the new hospital.
While the NSW Liberals have also recognised the need for a new Eurobodalla Hospital, they have woefully underfunded the project, with fears the planned hospital will exclude inpatient mental health services. This is a slap in the face for a region that faces mental health and alcohol and other drug challenges.
Labor’s combined $200 million commitment includes $50 million more than the Liberals have promised, and builds on federal Labor’s existing commitment that a Shorten Government will grant a full Medicare MRI licence to the region, boosting access to life-saving scans.
Labor believes every Australian should get the best quality health care whenever they need it – no matter if you live in Sydney or regional New South Wales.
The Liberals on the other hand just cut and cut and cut from health. As Treasurer, Scott Morrison cut from health and hospitals in every Budget he authored.
Only Labor will reverse the Liberals’ cuts to hospitals with our $2.8 billion Better Hospitals Fund, which we will use to fund projects like this one.
Labor can afford to help build a new hospital in Eurobodalla, because we are tackling unfair tax loopholes and making multinationals pay their fair share.