FEASIBILITY STUDY CONTESTED

Earlier this month I reiterated my support for Radiation Treatment Services to be made available in the Limestone Coast despite the outcome of the long-awaited Mount Gambier Radiation Therapy Service Feasibility Study’s Final Report that determined a service was not feasible.

This week I have received feedback on this Feasibility Study from the Radiation Oncology Access Coalition (ROAC).  ROAC is a member-based organisation that includes consumer advocates, private treatment providers, not-for-profits, technical experts, clinical experts, and RT equipment vendors. The broad membership and expertise of ROAC make them a trusted source to inform Government policy to see better health outcomes for Australians. 

ROAC have raised serious and substantive concerns regarding the premise of the Study, the definitions and criteria, as well as the age and availability of some of the evidence used in the report.

In short, the ROAC have determined the Study to be flawed and as such I do not believe that the Government has any justifiable reason to re-direct $4.3 million of funding away from its intended purpose.

To this end, I have written to the Health Minister requesting that further consideration be given to the matter before the Federal Funding that I secured in 2019 for Radiation Treatment Services be spent on general upgrades to the Mount Gambier Hospital.

The State Labor Government has no mandate to spend this funding on anything other than radiation treatment services given 20,000 people signed a petition calling on the State Government to deliver radiation treatment services in the Limestone Coast.

It’s simply not right that regional South Australian’s don’t have access to this lifesaving treatment when every other State in the country can point to a regional radiation treatment service operating in their State.

I won’t sit by and let Limestone Coast residents continue to have to make the decision to travel hundreds of kilometres for treatment or not receive the treatment at all.