Jay Weatherill has today abandoned all South Australians, turning his back on more than $1.5 billion of additional funding for South Australian hospitals.
He has chosen cheap politics ahead of better care for patients.
We welcome the decision by the New South Wales and Western Australian Governments to sign onto an agreement that will deliver record funding for their hospitals.
We stand ready to deliver record hospital funding for South Australian hospitals, providing more doctors, nurses and services.
Under the new deal offered today by the Turnbull Government, South Australian hospital funding would increase from $6.5 billion over the five years to 2019-20, to more than $8 billion over the five years to 2024-25.
This is a funding increase of more than 23 per cent.
The more patients treated, the more funding the Commonwealth provides.
Our record hospital funding means more doctors, more nurses and importantly more services and support for South Australian patients.
Jay Weaherill must also explain why Commonwealth funding for South Australia is growing faster than his own contribution.
Between 2013-14 and 2016-17 the Turnbull Government increased funding to South Australian hospitals by 25.8 per cent while the Weatherill Labor Government only increased their funding by 6.2 per cent.
If anyone is short-changing South Australian patients, it is Jay Weatherill.
As part of a new long-term agreement, the Turnbull Government will provide an additional $30 billion for Australian hospitals, totalling $128 billion over the next five years.
This will deliver millions of additional services to Australian patients.
Every year would be a record funding amount, in each and every state and territory.
(ENDS)