Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Government Business in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the senator for his supplementary question. Those opposite should perhaps get on with the game of helping to build our health system. The National Health And Hospital Network will change the way the Commonwealth funds hospitals. They will be funded nationally and run locally. This change builds on the historic investments already made by the government in public hospitals and in providing training for more doctors and nurses. The Commonwealth will fund local hospitals directly for each service that they provide through local hospital networks. The price of each service will be determined by an independent umpire who will draw on expert advice and will strike an appropriate balance between access, clinical safety and efficiency. Because we understand that the cost of delivering health varies significantly around the country, regional and rural prices will not be set with city assumptions. The health reform commission estimates that the introduction of activity-based funding will lead to savings of—(Time expired)