HOWARTH FAILS ON MRI LICENCE FOR REDCLIFFE HOSPITAL

Luke Howarth has spectacularly failed to secure a Medicare MRI licence for Redcliffe Hospital from his own LNP Government – but Labor will deliver a new licence at the hospital, making life-saving scans more accessible for the people of Petrie.

Federal Shadow Health Minister Catherine King and Labor Candidate for Petrie Corinne Mulholland visited Redcliffe Hospital today to hear about the hospital’s desperate need for a MRI licence.

 

MRI scans are used to detect and diagnose conditions that affect soft tissue – including tumours and cancer – but can only be billed to Medicare with a licence from the federal government.

 

Under the federal LNP Government, Redcliffe Hospital does not have a licence, making MRI services unviable and forcing more than 2,600 patients a year to travel offsite for MRI services – including some ICU patients.

 

Despite this, Luke Howarth and Redcliffe Hospital were snubbed in the LNP’s recent announcement of MRI licences – which followed Labor’s commitment to grant more licences almost six months ago.

 

Instead of securing a MRI licence from his own Government, Howarth has released a bizarre video begging the hospital to apply for one.

 

In contrast, Corinne Mulholland and Labor will deliver a Medicare MRI licence for Redcliffe Hospital. The Queensland Government has said that the licence will make it more affordable to purchase and operate a MRI machine at the hospital.

 

When Labor was last in Government we awarded 238 MRI licences – delivering more affordable scans to hundreds of communities across the country. 

By stark contrast to Labor’s record, the Liberals awarded just five licences in their first five years in power – including two in marginal Liberal electorates during the 2016 campaign and one in WA as a result of a dodgy deal with One Nation. There was no opportunity for other communities to apply for a licence.

 

In May this year, Labor promised that a Shorten Government would invest an extra $80 million to grant even more MRI licences around Australia.

 

While we are glad that the LNP has now followed our lead, Luke Howarth’s failure to secure a licence for Redcliffe Hospital is further evidence that only Corinne Mulholland can be trusted on health care in Petrie.