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Better care for veterans –
hospital negotiations Minister for Veterans’ Affairs, Stuart Robert, today
announced the Government would be introducing a simplified approach to
contracting private hospital services that will ensure veterans continue to
receive high quality health services while reducing red tape for providers. "The Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) spends more
than $850 million a year on private hospital services for our veterans," Mr
Robert said. "The reason we are changing the way we purchase these
services is threefold – to provide access to the best possible care for
veterans, to reduce the administrative burden on hospitals, and to ensure value
for public money. "The new, simplified form of contracting will be open
all year round to private hospitals that meet key requirements, such as
licencing and accreditation. The only negotiation envisaged will be around fees.
I expect industry will welcome this
change, as it will significantly reduce the
administrative burden of previous tender processes." The new arrangements with private
hospitals will reflect best-practice purchasing trends in the
health sector. "The process will be improved for
everyone and ultimately, the veteran community will benefit in several ways,
including a continued focus on providing access to high quality health services
through a broad range of private hospitals," Mr Robert said. Current contracting arrangements
with private hospitals are due to expire on 30 June 2016, but veterans should be
reassured that their treatments will continue as normal while the new
arrangements are put in place. DVA consulted
widely with the private hospitals sector in the lead-up to the changes.
More information about the invitation to provide private hospital services is
available on the Austender website (www.tenders.gov.au).
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