A federal MP has issued a stark warning that Tasmania’s health system could collapse if Hobart Private Hospital is forced to shut its doors, with operator Healthscope facing potential receivership.
Independent MP Andrew Wilkie said the state simply can’t afford to lose the 150 beds and vital surgical services provided by Healthscope’s only Tasmanian facility.
“The Royal, obviously, is in a perilous state all the time and our health system would collapse if we lost the private,” Wilkie told Local Radio on Monday.
He warned that removing more than 100 beds from southern Tasmania would “surely tip our tertiary healthcare system, our hospital system, over the edge”.
The warning follows reports that Healthscope could enter receivership as early as today, putting hundreds of jobs at risk both in Tasmania and around the country.
Wilkie said he first raised the alarm back in March but was “basically dismissed by the Tasmanian government, who didn’t seem to think there was an issue here”.
“I think the Tasmanian government needs to get out there today and tell us what it is doing and what contingency plans it is putting in place,” he said.
“And would it even entertain the idea of buying the private back and rolling it into the public health system?”
Opposition health spokeswoman Ella Haddad said the situation was “deeply distressing”.
“Tasmania’s health system is already under immense pressure, and the closure of more key services is only going to make things worse,” Haddad said.
“If Hobart Private was forced to close its doors, there is no way the public system could absorb that demand.”
HealthScope has confirmed it is “continuing to engage with our lenders on the best path forward” regarding debt and sale processes.
All hospitals are operating normally but the company is “prepared if lenders decide to take a more formal path including the appointment of receivers”.
More on this story: Hobart Private Hospital workers fear closure as owner Healthscope scrambles to avoid collapse
Updated 1:40pm, Monday: McGrathNicol has been appointed as receivers for Healthscope, Australia’s second-largest private hospital operator.
Healthscope has assured patients that all of its 37 hospitals, including Hobart Private Hospital, will continue to operate as normal.
