Nationals NSW Senator Fiona Nash has called on Rudd Labor to give a guarantee to the people of regional New South Wales they will not become victims of Kevin Rudd’s hospital reform takeover plan.
Speaking at The Tweed Hospital on the NSW North Coast earlier today, Senator Nash said Rudd Labor must guarantee its hospital takeover plan will lead to improved services and not hospital closures for regional New South Wales.
“My concern is we’re not getting the whole story on hospitals from Rudd Labor,” said Senator Nash.
“If Senior New South Wales health officials are correct the Rudd reform could force the closure of more than one hundred NSW hospitals, almost all of which are in regional NSW.”
“Many hospitals across NSW are already at peak capacity with no room for expansion; so where are these patients supposed to go if they lose their local hospitals? And, how will they get there, with next to no public transport available?
“One hospital closure will sorely impact on a local community and lead to job losses and more hurt across an already ailing health sector. One hundred plus hospital closures across the State will devastate regional NSW communities.
“Even NSW State Labor are talking down the Rudd hospital reform package.
“Last week Kevin Rudd had no solution to fix hospitals across NSW, but this week he does.
“Is this a hospital fix or a political fix from Kevin ‘all talk and no action’ Rudd.
“Labor’s emissions trading scheme has been put on the backburner, the Henry Tax Review appears to have been shelved. And what about the insulation debacle?.
“How long before Rudd Labor’s hospital reform gets all too hard to fix and falls by the way side too?
Kevin Rudd and Nicola Roxon need to stop playing games with the people of regional New South Wales, said Senator Nash.
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