Labor will scrap the surgery wait list guarantee, saying it would not spend $30 million on tackling the “waiting list for the waiting list”. Source: Supplied
HEALTH Minister Cameron Dick will consider tying local health board bosses’ jobs to surgery targets, as he moves to scrap the LNP’s wait time guarantee.
The Palaszczuk Government plans to tear up the Newman government policy — which the former government promised would guarantee most patients would receive their surgery within clinically recommended times, either within the public or private system and without charge.
The Health Minister said the State would not spend $30 million on tackling the “waiting list for the waiting list”, which consists of Queenslanders waiting for outpatient or diagnostic appointments.
Labor says there are some 114,000 patients on this list.
Mr Dick has seemingly spent recent days foreshadowing his decision with a series of press conferences in which he highlighted issues he had identified relating to the program.
He today described the wait time guarantee as a “gimmick”, saying new targets wold kick in next month.
“We’re going to put some interim targets in place, which will apply from the 1st of April until we can develop some more substantial permanent targets down the track,” he said.
The interim targets would involve 98 per cent of category 1 patients getting their surgery within 30 days, and 95 per cent of category 2 and 3 patients receiving treatment within clinically recommended times.
He said there would be “no exemptions” and pointed to the wait time guarantee’s list of exempted surgeries.
When asked whether local health board chief executives’ jobs would be tied or linked to the targets, Mr Dick said he “wouldn’t rule anything out”.
“I’ve not made a decision on that,” he said.
“It’s a good point. I’d need to look at how they’re engaged.
“But at the end of the day, what happens in the system is we have a board for each of the hospital and health systems, they engage the chief executive. We have a service agreement with each of those. I’m happy to consider that, but I really need to look at what the current arrangements are … I don’t want to trample over those initially, that would be unfair to the chief executives.”
The Health Minister clarified that the $30 million would be drawn from uncommitted funds.
“We found that money, that’s available,” he said.
“It’s not new money, it’s not money that I’ve requested from Treasury, it’s using the money in the most effective way possible to deliver the best outcomes.”
Mr Dick said no other services would be cut to free up the money.
“No, nothing’s been cut,” he said.
Mr Dick said he wanted to set achievable targets.
“I want to be realistic about what we do, I want to set more balanced and realistic targets about what we can achieve,” he said.
“I’m advised by the department this is achievable. My expectation, when I speak to the chief executives is treatment within the clinically recommended time.”
He said he wanted to be “realistic”.
“My approach to elective surgery, to wait times and to the portfolio generally, is to be realistic, is to be genuine and is to be transparent about these things,” he said.