More than 3000 elderly Australians are stuck in public hospitals when they should be at home or in residential aged care, state health ministers say, in what they describe as a deepening bed block crisis.
The figures come from a report card released on Friday as the state and territory ministers prepared to meet their federal counterpart, Mark Butler, in Brisbane, to negotiate the next five-year public hospital funding deal.
They say the number of “stranded” patients has risen by 630 since they appealed to the federal government to take action at their last meeting in September.
The ministers said the funding stalemate was blocking beds needed for emergency care.Credit: Dan Peled
The problem is most acute in Queensland, where more than 1,000 elderly patients are languishing in public hospital beds, followed by NSW, with more than 850.
The ministers argued that each of these patients was medically ready for discharge, but could not leave, as there were no beds for them to go to in federally managed aged care facilities.
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In a joint statement, Queensland’s Health Minister Tim Nicholls said the federal government had not delivered on its responsibility.
“The states and territories have been doing the heavy lifting when it comes to Stranded Australians, delaying other Queenslanders needing emergency care,” he said.
His counterpart in New South Wales, Ryan Park, said his state was doing its part by investing in aged care outreach, hospital in the home and other initiatives.
