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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2000 Week 11 Hansard (29 November) . . Page.. 3376 ..
Ayes, 8 Noes, 9 Ms Carnell Mr Berry Mr Cornwell Mr Corbell Mr Hird Mr Hargreaves Mr Humphries Mr Quinlan Mr Kaine Mr Stanhope Mr Rugendyke Mr Moore Mr Smyth Mr Osborne Mr Stefaniak Ms Tucker Mr Wood
Question so resolved in the negative.
MR STANHOPE: My question is directed to the Minister for Health, Housing and Community Care. At the Estimates Committee hearings early this month the minister and his officials revealed that although Canberra and Calvary hospitals had won tenders for additional surgery designed to attack unacceptably long elective surgery waiting lists, contracts had still not been signed with all hospitals. Can the minister say whether the unsigned contracts have been signed? If not, why not? Can the minister say how many patients on the waiting lists took up his offer to fund travel to Sydney or to other hospitals outside the ACT to have operations undertaken?
MR MOORE: Thank you for the question, Mr Stanhope. I will answer the last part first. I have flagged the possibility of operations being done in Sydney. No specific offers have been made that I am aware of. I have flagged that I am prepared to do that.
With regard to the specific question about where we are at with those contracts, this morning I signed off a reply to the Estimates Committee which examined this, and that will go through. I don't recall whether we were specific about whether contracts have been signed or not, so I will take that on notice and come back to you.
MR STANHOPE: Thank you. Can the minister confirm that Canberra Hospital removed long-wait category 2 patients from its waiting lists in anticipation that these patients would be booked by other hospitals that won the tenders, with the consequence that the latest published waiting lists do not reflect the true position? What has been the impact of the delays in completing contracts? Can the minister confirm that in fact the delays have seen patients waiting even longer, while Canberra Hospital is booking patients who have joined the waiting lists much more recently?
MR MOORE
: No. We focused specifically on the long-wait patients. I understand they were originally taken off the waiting lists. Those that were not able to be done have been put back on the waiting lists. Some negotiation went on between Calvary Hospital and
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