By Andrew Brown and Tess Ikonomou
Medical groups have welcomed a multibillion-dollar boost to public hospitals, but further reforms are being sought to improve patient care.
States and territories will receive $25 billion extra in commonwealth funding for hospitals following a meeting of national cabinet on Friday.
Anthony Albanese said the five-year deal, to come into effect from July, would provide more than $219 billion – triple the amount given to jurisdictions under the previous agreement.
It’s $2 billion more than what the prime minister had put on the table to premiers and chief ministers earlier when renegotiating hospital funding arrangements.
“It is a major step forward in addressing the pressures that are there on our health and aged care systems, as well as on the NDIS, ensuring their sustainability into the future,” Mr Albanese told reporters in Sydney on Friday.
“Under our federation system, what that requires is for the Commonwealth, together with states and territories, to work together in the interests of the respective states, but also in the national interest.
“That is what we have been provided for with this agreement.”
The national cabinet meeting was the last chance for federal, state and territory leaders to agree to hospital funding measures before the current arrangements lapsed.
While it wasn’t due to expire until the end of June, an impending election in South Australia in March meant that government would go into caretaker mode and negotiations could not be carried out with all jurisdictions.
It was a relief a deal had been struck after multiple rounds of failed negotiations, Australian Medical Association president Danielle McMullen said.
“The additional funding announced by the prime minister in this agreement is welcome and long overdue and it will be critical for states and territories to ensure they lift their own funding levels as well,” Dr McMullen said.
“Our own modelling would suggest that today’s announcement alone will not be enough to stop the decline in hospital performance, with patients waiting too long for emergency surgery, longer waits for essential surgery and ambulance ramping.”
The Albanese government in December had offered $23 billion for public hospitals across five years, including $2 billion to help states manage elderly patients languishing in hospitals while they wait for aged care beds.
States and territories had insisted the federal government stick to a 2023 agreement that the Commonwealth would increase its share of public hospital funding to 42.5 per cent by 2030 and 45 per cent by 2035.
The medical association president said while the amount offered to public hospitals would be beneficial, it would not reach the mark previously called for by states and territories.
“It is unlikely to reach the 45 per cent of total costs by 2030 the AMA has been calling for on behalf of our doctors and their patients,” Dr McMullen said.
“We are yet to hear how this new agreement will address (government) recommendations to clear the hospital logjam.”
NSW Premier Chris Minns said the extra funding would help to alleviate pressures on hospitals from an ageing population.
“We’ve got an ageing cohort, so as much as the system is stretched today, we can expect even further problems in the future,” he told reporters.
“But we’re very grateful that we’ve got this agreement today.”
Queensland Premier David Crisafulli had previously called for a better deal from the federal government, but said the agreement was a good move.
“If you’re asking me whether or not I would have liked to have seen more, of course … but we’ve taken a really big step forward today,” he said.
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