Victorian Health Minister David Davis is demanding compensation from the Federal Government. Source: Herald Sun
VICTORIA'S cash-strapped hospitals have been hit with an extra $6.7 million in energy costs due to the carbon tax in just six months, new data reveals.
State government analysis of hospital bills shows carbon charges made up on average 15 per cent of hospital energy bills.
Health Minister David Davis has written to the Federal Government demanding compensation for the increased costs of caring for sick and injured Victorians.
Mr Davis said hospital budget bottom lines were suffering, leading to slower growth in services.
"This is an additional cost that is slugged on top for hospitals and health services," Mr Davis said.
The Government's carbon audit shows Southern Health was charged $685,000 for the carbon price, Austin Health $602,000, Alfred Health $403,000, Western Health $384,000 and the Royal Children's Hospital $367,000.
In total the hospitals were charged an estimated $45.6 million for energy between July 1 and December 31. Carbon charges ranged from 8 to 22 per cent of their total energy cost.
Omeo District Health had a $23,000 energy bill, $1779 of it due to the carbon tax.
Mr Davis said the new federal funding arrangement was agreed in December 2011, before the carbon tax was introduced, and did not adequately cover the new costs.
"This is Julia Gillard putting a tax on hospitals and healthcare," Mr Davis said. "We are looking for our hospitals to be compensated."
But federal Health Minister Tanya Plibersek's spokesman, Simon Crittle, said that Commonwealth funding to hospitals would rise by $20 billion over this decade and would cover the carbon costs to hospitals many times over.
"Indexation . . . will see federal hospital funding increase by 6.5 per cent this financial year, going up each year to more than 10 per cent indexation in 2015-16."
He said the Department of Health and Ageing estimated the impact of the carbon price would be 0.3 per cent of hospital costs -- equal to 3c in every $10.
The state government audit encompassed hospital billing records, previous energy usage and average carbon prices.
A total of $5.85 million, or 87 per cent, of the carbon price cost was based on bills from hospitals and billing data provided by Hospital Energy Buying Group, which buys energy on behalf of major energy users.
The Government obtained full billing data from 30 of 91 Victorian hospitals.
Last year the Herald Sun revealed that a report commissioned by the Victorian Department of Health showed the carbon tax would add an additional $13.4 million to the public health system in its first year.
This new data is line with that modelling, which found that over the next decade the total cost to the health system would be $170 million.
- with Grant McArthur
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