THE Palaszczuk Government has already failed in its promise to build so-called “satellite hospitals” with construction delayed and over budget.
The LNP can reveal the government’s budget service delivery statements show the program has already blown out by $15 million.
The Premier announced that seven satellite hospitals would be built at a cost of $265 million by 2023.
Today it was confirmed at Estimates the facilities won’t be delivered on time and new budget figures show the cost has already blown out to $280 million.
Shadow Health Minister Ros Bates said it was further evidence that the government was losing control of the health system and cannot be trusted to heal the Queensland Health Crisis.
“During the election campaign, the Premier promised seven satellite hospitals would be fully operational by May 2023 but construction hasn’t even started at many of these sites,” she said.
“Today in Estimates we learned they will not be delivered on time or on budget.
“If Queenslanders can’t trust the Palaszczuk Government to build these day clinics on time or on budget, how can they trust them to build real hospitals in a health crisis?”
Ms Bates said the AMAQ agreed these satellite hospitals would not deliver the health care Queenslanders so desperately need.
“The AMAQ has said these facilities are ‘only hospital by name and certainly not by nature’,” she said.
“Now we know they’re over budget and at risk of running late.
“In the middle of a health crisis, Queenslanders deserve to know they will get the infrastructure they need so they can rely on the health system in their hour of need.”