By NOEL MURPHY
Shadow Health Minister Gavin Jennings and the Australian Healthcare and Hospitals Association have backed calls for an Ombudsman inquiry into a secret $50 million deal struck with private operator Epworth Hospital to build a public hospital promised by the State Government.
Bellarine MP and former Barwon Health chair Lisa Neville last week demanded the Ombudsman probe, declaring “something stinks” about the $50 million exclusive Epworth deal at Waurn Ponds after the government halted an open tender process for a promised public hospital.
Mr Jennings said Geelong had been “promised a public hospital” but “shortchanged by Denis Napthine”.
“Under the public proposal, the community knew what they were going to get, but under this proposal no one knows what is on the cards, because the deal has been shrouded in secrecy,” Mr Jennings said.
Australian Healthcare and Hospitals Association CEO Alison Verhoeven told the Independent the deal should stand up to public scrutiny.
“Governments are increasingly looking at options for contracting the provision of public hospital and healthcare services to private providers,” she said.
“However, the quality, safety and affordability of services must not be compromised by these arrangements, and taxpayer dollars must be well spent.
“Governments committed to getting value for money in their contracting arrangements with the private sector should also commit to open and transparent tender processes which stand up to public scrutiny.”
Epworth, running two years behind with its own $277 million private hospital, has refused to answer questions submitted by The Independent, citing grounds it was an applicant in the tender process.
However, it has since issued two lengthy media statements, citing a starting date for work this week and the appointment of a new CEO, Geelong’s Damian Armour.
The Epworth public deal involves 32 public beds, same-day surgery theatres, chemotherapy and renal dialysis services within the $277 million teaching hospital, which was initially scheduled to open in May 2013.
The secret deal pushed St John of God, which recently completed a $65 million hospital expansion in Geelong out of the running. A second private hospital is understood to have been sidelined as well.
Health Minister David Davis, a trenchant critic of previous government health spending, has insisted no deal had been done with Epworth. He told The Independent “a strict process” was in place regarding the exclusive negotiation process.
Ms Neville last week said the Ombudsman could investigate the dumped tender process, “who stopped it” and the “deals and arrangements” with Epworth”.
“Something stinks about this and I’d certainly be encouraging the Ombudsman to have an investigation into this matter,” she said, describing the Government’s refusal to explain the deal on grounds of commercial confidence as “absolutely too convenient”.
