GWAHS: STONER SLAMS LABOR OVER COUNTRY HEALTH
27 October 2009
In Parliament today, Leader of The Nationals Andrew Stoner slammed the State Labor Government over its continuing cuts to country health, particularly in the Greater Western Area Health Service (GWAHS) region.
Mr Stoner moved a priority motion to debate the Rees Government’s continuing cuts to essential regional health services and asked Premier Nathan Rees a question in Parliament.
A 64 page NSW Health document drafted in August and obtained under Freedom of Information laws by The Nationals Upper House Leader and Duty MLC for Dubbo, Duncan Gay, details “services to remain” and “services to cease” across GWAHS.
However, large amounts of text are blacked out in the document, including all planned “services to cease” at many country health facilities across GWAHS. Despite the Premier’s supposed new commitment to freedom of information, laughably even the title of the document is blacked out, along with the table of contents.
Mr Stoner said the State Government should release the document in full.
“People right across the GWAHS area have been crying out for more regional health services for years, but Labor has continued to cut them over 14 years,” Mr Stoner said.
“Everybody would now agree that the regional heath system is broken under Labor,” he said.
“The recent tragedy involving a Condobolin couple who died in a car accident has been felt across the State and highlights the lack of adequate health services in many regions of NSW.
“The bad news for people in Western NSW is that if they think things are bad now, then they are only going to get worse.
“Sixty four pages of documents obtained under FOI reveal that there are many “services to cease” at GWAHS under plans being drawn up by NSW Health at the direction of the Rees Labor Government.
“However, the State Labor Government has shamelessly refused to admit which health services it is looking at cutting, by blacking out large amounts of text in the document.
“Premier Nathan Rees and Health Minister Carmel Tebbutt should come clean on this document and release it in full so the community knows what to expect.
“Under Labor, the health system is broken and it’s only going to get worse. NSW needs change to fix the health system and the entire State.
“The Liberals & Nationals believe Labor’s health cuts are reckless and irresponsible. We want to see district health boards to give power back to the community. We also have a policy to pay health bills on time or incur interest. We want to deliver change and fix Labor’s many problems after the 2011 election,” Mr Stoner said.
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