Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for the Murray Darling Basin) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I, and also on behalf of Senators Ferguson, Bernardi, Birmingham, Fisher, Minchin and Xenophon, move:

That the Senate—   (a)   recognises the important role that community hospitals play in the lives of regional communities and in providing early access to care for life threatening conditions and trauma;

  (b)   condemns the South Australian Government for deciding in its 2010 State Budget to cut funding to three community hospitals in regional areas;

  (c)   recognises the critical role that the Keith and District Hospital Inc., Moonta Health and Aged Care Service Inc. and the Ardrossan Community Hospital Inc. play in the lives of those living and travelling in regional South Australia; and

  (d)   calls on the Government to:

     (i)   reduce the National Healthcare Specific Purpose Payment to the South Australian Govern­ment by $1 046 000 in the 2011-12 financial year,

     (ii)   index the above amount by the growth factor contained in Schedule D of the Intergo­vernmental Agreement on Federal Financial Relations,

     (iii)   make a direct financial transfer to the Keith and District Hospital Inc. of $600 000 and annually index this amount by the growth factor contained in the Intergovernmental Agreement,

     (iv)   make a direct financial transfer to the Moonta Health and Aged Care Service Inc. of $300 000 and annually index this amount by the growth factor contained in the Intergovernmental Agreement, and

     (v)   make a direct financial transfer to the Ardrossan Community Hospital Inc. of $146 000 and annually index this amount by the growth factor contained in the Intergovernmental Agreement.

Question agreed to.