The Nationals’ Member for Mildura, Jade Benham, has called on the Allan Labor Government to provide important financial support to our rural Bush Nursing Centres (BNCs), which face an uncertain future.
Woomelang and District BNC plays a critical role in their local communities, but most face significant financial challenges.
“On top of their budget being reduced by 10%, I am being told that the government expects them to cover the nursing staff wage increases recently agreed to by government of 28.4% between now and 2027. They simply cannot do this,” Ms Benham said.
“There is no question the nurses deserve a pay rise, but it cannot be implemented without financial support provided to all BNCs to meet these increased costs.
“Nurses do an amazing job, and our bush nurses have an extensively dynamic skill set to adapt to the range of care needed in rural settings.
“However, it is completely unfair that our remote care centres have not only had a funding cut, but the Minister remains silent on government support for these wage increases.
“The Allan Labor Government is playing a dangerous game with rural and regional critical health services, and we want to see no change in employment, outreach capacity or service provision.
“It is appalling that BNCs have had to go to the Victorian Healthcare Association as a collective to plead for Ministerial intervention.
“The reality is these situations, along with our health system cuts more generally, the state of our county roads and a litany of other issues, is all a result of the catastrophic mismanagement of the state’s finances.
“Premier Jacinta Allan can’t manage money, can’t manage our health system and Victorian families are paying the price.”
