Wednesday, 21 September 2022

 Ms RYAN (Euroa) (09:55): I rise today in my final act in this place to urge the government to properly fund Euroa Health. Today I have tabled a petition with 1525 signatures. That petition ran just for a week. Local residents are calling on the government to properly fund their health service, their hospital, to keep the doors open. This is an issue of equity and justice for my community. Strathbogie remains the only local government area in Victoria that has no publicly funded health system. Nearby hospitals servicing similar populations to Euroa, such as Alexandra, Mansfield, Rochester and Kerang, receive on average $438 000 for every bed that they have from the state government each year. Euroa Health, because it was established as a community-owned hospital nearly 100 years ago, receives $9300 for each bed it has. This injustice cannot be continued. Without immediate intervention the hospital will close. Despite its incredibly efficient operation, this year it is on track to post a deficit of some $630 000. I know our candidate for Euroa, Annabelle Cleeland, will fight for it if she is elected in November, but the truth is that by then it may be too late. At a time when the health system is in such crisis it is unthinkable that Labor would allow a hospital to fold simply because it is community owned.