Full extent of Peter Mac cuts revealed

Shadow Minister for Health, Mary Wooldridge

It has now been revealed the cost of Daniel Andrews’ ideological decision to scrap 42 cancer beds and 4 operating theatres from Peter Mac has doubled to $40 million in lost donations.
In a submission to the Victorian Parliament’s Economy and Infrastructure Committee, Chairman of the Peter Mac Callum Cancer Foundation, Professor Lester Peters raised serious concerns for the “profound negative consequences” of Daniel Andrews’ captain’s call:
…the arbitrary decision to cancel approval for Peter Mac Private was an egregious error that will adversely affect [Peter Mac Callum Cancer Centre’s] goal of achieving world class ranking and will seriously limit the revenue/gift generating potential that would result from offering private care facilities.
Professor Peters also raised concerns that the removal of the private wing will reduce the time surgeons spend at the Victorian Comprehensive Cancer Centre (VCCC).
Had Peter Mac Private come to reality, along with in-house consulting room suites, most surgeons would have been able to structure their practices to be geographically full-time within the VCCC precinct – a great advantage in terms of optimising the [Multi-Disciplinary Team] model.

Quotes attributable to Shadow Minister for Health, Mary Wooldridge:
Daniel Andrews deliberately picked a fight to stop Peter Mac Private going ahead, against the wishes of the Peter Mac Board, the Peter Mac Foundation and the Board of the VCCC, all of whom had approved the approach. Instead of causing deep division, the Premier should have put his socialist ideology aside for the benefit of Victorians with cancer.
Instead, the 13th Floor at the VCCC remains unoccupied, costing the taxpayer over $700,000 a year and 10,000 cancer patients who would have received care having to find other treatment alternatives.

Media contact:      Michael Lewis         0433 495 454         michael.lewis@opposition.vic.gov.au