Tuesday, 17 March 2020

COVID-19

Mr M O’BRIEN (Malvern—Leader of the Opposition) (12:17): My question is again to the Premier. On Sunday the Premier announced funding for an additional 7000 elective surgeries. However, in the six months to December 2019 elective surgery waiting lists blew out by an extra 11 000 people. Will the Premier now commit the extra resources needed to completely clear the 11 000 additional Victorians that were added to the elective surgery waiting lists over the past six months?

Mr ANDREWS (Mulgrave—Premier) (12:17): I thank the Leader of the Opposition for his question. I want to explain for the Leader of the Opposition’s benefit and all members’ benefit exactly what the origins of Sunday’s decisions were. We are going to get to a position in Victoria where all elective surgery will be cancelled—that is where we are going to get to, so the Leader of the Opposition can talk about lists and look back at those lists. The fact of the matter is—and no-one is pleased about this—the sickest patients must be treated quickest. The Leader of the Opposition is keen on criteria; well, there is one for you—right now and every day the sickest patients will be treated quickest. That will mean that we will ask of many, many patients and their loved ones to postpone and delay their surgery to a point where I think it is almost certain that all elective surgery other than borderline emergency surgery—so the most urgent of elective surgery—will be cancelled.

It makes perfect sense to try and get as much done as we can before that point. That is why $60 million in additional funding was provided on top of additional money we had provided to the system only a few months ago, particularly in response to flu last year—a top-up to do even more surgery. I do want to make the point, though, that this has been developed in consultation with hospitals, in consultation with doctors and others, to make sure that of those 7000 surgeries they will be in general terms—I do not want to be too specific, but I can say to the Leader of the Opposition—patients that could perhaps wait a few weeks but would be best clinically if they did not wait months.

They are going to be given priority, and I think that is the appropriate thing to do. I do want to make it clear as well, though, that if at any point the delivery of that additional activity, the conduct of that additional activity—the performance of those surgeries—becomes a strain, if that sees critical resources that need to be reserved for COVID-19 patients used, then of course doctors and hospitals will be free to make different judgements, but it is our aim to get on and get those more urgent elective surgery patients treated—

Mr M O’Brien: On a point of order, Speaker, I appreciate the Premier’s answer; however, the question was: will the Premier commit the resources needed to completely clear the 11 000 additional elective surgery people on the waiting list? The Premier has not advised the house. He has not answered the—

Members interjecting.

The SPEAKER: Order! When the house comes to order. Order! The Leader of the Opposition has the call.

Mr M O’Brien: The Premier has not answered the question or even gone to the question of whether he will commit the additional resources required to address the 11 000 backlog as opposed to just the 7000.

The SPEAKER: Order! I am aware of the question that was asked by the Leader of the Opposition. The Premier is being very relevant to the question asked, and I remind members not to repeat the question when raising a point of order.

Mr ANDREWS: The advice I have is that it is only a matter of time before we have to completely cancel all elective surgery. I think that answers the question that the Leader of the Opposition has put to us.

Members interjecting.

Mr ANDREWS: Well, they are the facts. The best of advice has been provided that we do have an opportunity to get these patients the surgery that they need before there is a massive disruption to that part of our health system. I would have thought that was something we could all unite behind. Again, the government will push forward to do that work regardless of the views of others, because it is based on clinical advice, it is based on common sense and it is the right thing to do.

Mr M O’BRIEN (Malvern—Leader of the Opposition) (12:21): On Sunday the Premier reannounced $30 million for the Casey Hospital, a project which has been delayed twice by his government and is now running more than 18 months late. At a time like this in particular Victorians need facts, not spin. So instead of passing off old money as something new, what genuinely new investment will the Premier now provide to assist our public hospitals to cope with the challenges of the coronavirus?

Mr ANDREWS (Mulgrave—Premier) (12:22): On Friday, when there was a meeting conducted with a considerably different tone to question time today, national leaders on behalf of their communities made a commitment that we would sign onto. I on behalf of all Victorians—even including the Leader of the Opposition—signed onto a historic bipartisan agreement to share the costs of COVID-19, the burden that that will place, the big demand, the unprecedented demand, that that will place on our health system. Over and above those arrangements we have also brought forward, because commissioning new hospitals—something that I am pleased to say this side of the house knows one or two things about—does take time, but it is going to be done much quicker, and that is why additional funding was made available to open those beds ahead of time. There are choices to be made in this debate, and I choose to follow the advice and to act in a bipartisan way.