Amanda Rishworth (Kingston, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Early Childhood Education) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We have now seen the impact of what an election of a Liberal state government is having on the health system, particularly in the southern suburbs of Adelaide. I would like to say that it was a surprise, but we know that before the state election it was very clear that the state Liberals were out of their depth when it came to planning to invest in our health system. We're also seeing in the southern suburbs, when it comes to the federal system, out-of-pocket costs to see a GP or specialist soaring. Waiting times are blowing out, and private health insurance companies are putting up their profits rather than looking after consumers. It is disappointing that we have seen Liberals in both the state and federal governments cut millions from our public hospitals in South Australia, including from the hospitals that residents in my electorate rely on.

Slashing funding from hospitals has real consequences. We are hearing report after report of patients being stranded for hours in ambulances waiting for emergency departments to admit them. Indeed, there have been some unfortunate reports that people have died while waiting to get into emergency departments. This is a real tragedy: not only are we hearing about significant waiting when it comes to our hospital and emergency departments but we are hearing about waiting lists when it comes to elective surgery. For the people that rely on this surgery, it is not elective. Whether it is having cataract surgery or whether it's having hip surgery or knee surgery, these are the types of things that improve residents' quality of life. I've had a number of locals come to me saying that they have been waiting over two years to actually access elective surgery lists. That is just unacceptable.

In addition, what's been incredibly concerning is that people who have done the cancer bowel testing kit are waiting months and months for colonoscopies. In fact, we've had one local say that, after a positive test—so, a red flag out there—they have had to wait over a year to get a colonoscopy to actually get checked. This is a serious issue. You need to expect better, and residents expect better, from their public health system. This is putting people's lives at risk. It is time that both the state Liberal Party and the federal Liberal Party rock up with some cash, invest in our health system and actually make sure that the health system is there for everyone when they need it.