Anne Ruston (SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister representing the Minister for Health, Senator Gallagher. Can the minister please advise whether the government believes the demand for state and territory hospital services will increase or decrease over the next four years?

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I think I know where this might be going. We expect that hospital activity and demand for hospital activity will increase. There has been a decrease in activity because of the pandemic and that has been reflected in adjustments through the activity based funding arrangement, but we are expecting that demand for hospital services will continue to grow as we normalise back into a post-COVID world. I would also say those adjustments in the budget don't take into account the extra funding that went through the COVID payments.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Ruston, a first supplementary?

Anne Ruston (SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Could the minister please explain why she believes and states the government believes there will be an increase in demand for hospital services, when there has been a $2.4 billion cut to hospital services that are being provided to the states and territories over the next four years, which, they say, is a reflection of the reduction in the volume of hospital services that are being demanded?

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I would have thought, considering that you've recently been in government, that you would understand how the funding flows through in these. They are largely parameter adjustments that are based on the activity that was advised through the activity based funding.

Opposition Senators:

Opposition senators interjecting—

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Well, that is the reality. That is the system that you have operated on.

Opposition senators interjecting—

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order, order.

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Forecast activity and activity through the pandemic, based on the data that the states and territories provide to the Commonwealth, is reconciled through the budget process. It doesn't take into account the extra funding that has and will continue to be provided through the special payments under the COVID arrangements. As people would know, through the very successful National Cabinet we continue to work with the states and territories over pressures more broadly in the health system, including a broken primary care system which you oversaw.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Ruston, a second supplementary question?

Anne Ruston (SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In confirming that there is a $2.4 billion cut to hospital funding, can the minister please explain why the government has decided that Victoria is to pay $2 billion of the $2.4 billion cut to hospital funding?

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm not sure I understand which two things you're linking there.

Opposition Senators:

Opposition senators interjecting—

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm happy to take it on notice and come back to you. But there is an adjustment through forecast activity that was reconciled based on the work the hospitals have done. The reality is, during the COVID-19 pandemic they did less of their activity, less of their normal activity that gets funded through this mechanism. That has been reconciled. There is additional funding going into health, I think in the order of $6 billion. We continue to work with the states and territories. They've got a government that wants to talk to them about how hospitals work, how the primary healthcare system works with that and how aged care works with that. You've got to see it on the continuum, and you'll see that in the budget: more funding for aged care, more funding for health and working with the states and territories on a national health system.

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

President, I ask that further questions be placed on the Notice Paper.