From http://www.health.gov.au

3 March 2010

The Rudd Government today announced major structural reforms to Australia’s health and hospital system.

The Government will deliver better health services and better hospitals by establishing a National Health and Hospitals Network.

This new national network will be funded nationally and run locally.

These reforms represent the biggest changes to Australia’s health and hospital system since the introduction of Medicare, and one of the most significant reforms to the federation in its history.

• A National Network: to bring together eight disparate State run systems with one set of tough national standards to drive and deliver better hospital services.
• Funded nationally: by taking the dominant funding role in the entire public hospital system the Australian Government will end the blame game, eliminate waste and shoulder the burden of funding to meet rapidly rising health costs.
• Run locally: through Local Hospital Networks bringing together small groups of hospitals, where local professionals with local knowledge are given the necessary powers to deliver hospital services to their community.

Read the full article: http://www.health.gov.au/internet/ministers/publishing.nsf/Content/mr-yr10-nr-nr038.htm

Back to Industry Focus