Labor said it would form the taskforce made up of clinical experts, logistics and operations experts along with past and present top health public servants and Department representatives.
It would be focussed on tackling the elective surgery waiting list, and will audit and implement improvements to surgery across NSW to reduce the lengthy waiting times experienced by patients.
Almost 100,000 people were on elective surgery waiting lists at the end of December, including more than to 17,000 who had waited longer than clinical guidelines say they should. This includes 4,000 children who are waiting for surgery with 1,000 of those waiting longer than clinically recommended.
NSW Labor Leader Chris Minns said there were 100,000 people sitting on an elective surgery waiting list in NSW …”They are in pain and discomfort”.
“The task force will be charged with ensuring we make a real dent in the list, clearing the backlog and ensuring people are not left on the list longer than clinically recommended,” he said.
However, the Coalition said Labor’s commitment to safe staffing levels, would blow up to a $1 billion black hole in their budget.
The NSW Liberal and Nationals said analysis of NSW Health data revealed Labor’s policy would cost more than six times the figure claimed and would need to employ 2,363 additional nurses and midwives to meet their promise, yet they had only committed to 1,200.
Treasurer Matt Kean said Labor’s budget black hole grew every day and taxpayers would have to fill it, while Health Minister Brad Hazzard said a re-elected NSW Liberal and Nationals Government would continue to rebuild our hospital and health facilities to support its record health workforce.
NSW Electoral Commissioner John Schmidt has also reminded voters that some would now be enrolled to vote in a different district even if their address had not changed.
He said the NSW State Election, on Saturday, March 25, would be the first election where the new districts came into effect, so voters needed to be aware.
Details: elections.nsw.gov.au.
