Page 2588 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 15 November 1989
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downturn of activity over the Christmas period must also be taken into account. There is a normal closure of wards and operating theatres at Christmas to enable staff to take leave. Again, this will have a significant effect on salaries and other costs.
Other seasonal trends show up clearly in an analysis of expenditure over past years. In particular, it is apparent that non-salaries items historically have peaked in the first quarter of the financial year. Current indications are that this effect would abnormally inflate a straight line projection of costs by at least $2m for the year.
Another issue which will impact on this year's activity is the need for urgent and essential works at Royal Canberra Hospital to remove asbestos and to upgrade fire protection measures which have been found to be below standard by the fire brigade. This work is vitally important if Royal Canberra Hospital is to retain its accreditation. This work will clearly affect hospital activity, and it needs to be taken into account in any analysis of patterns of expenditure.
There are a number of other basic trends in expenditure patterns which the much-publicised $10m figure does not take into account. For example, current expenditure is abnormally inflated by workers compensation payments which will be refunded under new arrangements with COMCARE. It is expected that the COMCARE refund will total $2.2m for the financial year. In addition, the Government's savings measures announced in the budget will reduce expenditure by $1.4m in the current financial year. The impact of these measures has not yet been reflected in hospital expenditure figures because the measures will only take effect later in the financial year. The final factor which will alter the overall picture is that certain adjustments to the base level of funding, largely associated with the Commonwealth grants to the ACT, have yet to be determined.
An amount of approximately $0.7m has not yet been allocated to the hospitals from the ACT Department of Community Services and Health, and a further amount earmarked for pathology is currently under negotiation with the Treasury. These increases to the base funding for the hospitals will naturally affect the outcome.
From this outline of the circumstances surrounding the publicised $10m blow-out and the problems ACT hospitals have had over recent years, members will see that there is, indeed, a great deal of work involved in coming to terms with the hospitals' budgetary situation. The Government is adamant that this work must be done. We will not be drawn into making hasty and ill-considered decisions before we have the facts on which to base those decisions.
In conclusion, we are determined to take a responsible attitude towards the hospitals' budgetary problems. We have taken a number of decisions in the budget that are
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