I am pleased to announce that the Australian Government is prepared to underwrite a community-based proposal to keep the Mersey Hospital in north-west Tasmania providing a full range of hospital services and treating public and private patients.
Until final negotiations have been completed with the community it is not possible to determine the exact cost of this proposal. However comparable operating costs for similarly-sized hospitals indicate that this should cost in the order of $40-45 million a year.
Responding to the clear voice of the local community who have raised significant concerns about the plans of the Tasmanian Labor Government to downgrade or close many of the services at this hospital, the Commonwealth will:
* in a direct relationship with the hospital, guarantee the continued funding of a wide range of public in-patient and out-patient services at the Mersey Hospital, not just the services that would remain after the Tasmanian Government's proposed hospital rationalisation;
* support the community operating the Mersey Hospital as a community-controlled and Commonwealth-funded institution, providing a comprehensive range of in-patient, out-patient, accident and emergency, and day procedure services as well as appropriate surgical and high-dependency capacity;
* support the establishment of a Mersey Community Hospital Trust, comprising regional local government, business and health profession leaders, to run the hospital on behalf of the community; and
* underwrite the Trust's recurrent and capital funding of the hospital, including the arrangements to lease buildings, infrastructure and medical equipment from the Tasmanian Government.
The Commonwealth will also explore with the Trust the possibility of additional related services using existing infrastructure, including enhancing the Mersey's role in the Rural Clinical School of the University of Tasmania, and providing after-hours GP services.
Recognising that this is a community-inspired and community-controlled initiative, the hospital will again be known as the Mersey Community Hospital.
The Commonwealth will underwrite the projected costs of this plan on an ongoing basis as a project of national significance. If this type of local community-based initiative works at the Mersey Hospital, it could be a model for keeping viable hospital facilities in other parts of regional Australia.
This plan has been put together by locals for locals. If the community consensus is to give it a go, and it involves no extra cost to the Tasmanian Government, I believe that this spirit of community self-help deserves encouragement and support.
Depending on transitional and implementation arrangements to be negotiated, including the establishment of the Trust, I expect that the Trust will take full control of the hospital by 1 July 2008.
I have therefore today written to the Premier of Tasmania advising him of the Commonwealth's decision and calling on him to negotiate an arrangement with the local community that will benefit all Tasmanians, while in the meantime keeping services operating at the Mersey Hospital at their level immediately prior to the May 2007 health services rationalisation announcement. The Commonwealth is prepared to offer the Tasmanian Government appropriate transitional funding to ensure this.
I congratulate the regional community, the Federal Member for Braddon Mark Baker, and all involved on their leadership and perseverance, and on their great support for the Mersey Hospital.