THE ACT government has used its numbers to push the Health Infrastructure Enabling Bill 2023 through the Legislative Assembly, effectively taking over the Calvary Public Hospital from its long-term Catholic operators.

This move enables the government to acquire the Calvary Public Hospital land, and transition existing Calvary public hospital staff and assets to the territory from July 3.

The government’s unexpected, sudden move to acquire the property despite Calvary having 76 years to run on its lease, has been met with dismay by hospital nursing and medical staff. It is also  expected to be met by legal action in the absence of “just terms” for Calvary.

In a single sentence in a media announcement, Chief Minister Andrew Barr acknowledged that “Calvary has played a valuable role in the delivery of public hospital care in the ACT and I thank all staff, past and present, for their dedication to our community.”

The Liberal opposition, which opposed the takeover, labelled the move as “a disgrace”.

The government claims the passing of the bill provides certainty over the land and allows it develop a new northside hospital.

Despite Canberra Hospital’s nation-leading emergency waiting periods and surgery lists stretching out for years, the government says that consolidating the public hospitals to create a “single network” will allow it to “better co-ordinate our health services, distribute resources effectively, strengthen the capacity of our workforce, plan infrastructure on a territory-wide basis”.

“Through an integrated system, Canberra Health Services will be able to provide more efficient and innovative services, leveraging all of its hospitals and community-based services to deliver even better health care for Canberra and the surrounding region,” the government says.