THE State Government has rejected claims it is planning to privatise some services at the Lyell McEwin Hospital, calling them “union chatter”.

According to a report by Nine News, a letter from the South Australian Salaried Medical Officer Associations to the State Government raised concerns SA Health was planning to outsource the operation of surgical and outpatient services at the Elizabeth Grove hospital, as well as at the Modbury Hospital.

However, health minister Stephen Wade reiterated the State Government has no plans to privatise the services.

“The Marshall Liberal Government’s $96 million upgrade of Modbury Hospital is well under way and already starting to deliver better services, closer to home, for the previously neglected residents of Adelaide’s northeast,” he said.

“While Labor tried to downgrade services at Modbury through its disastrous Transforming Health experiment, we are building a high dependency unit, an extended emergency care unit, an acute medical unit, an acute surgical unit and a purpose-built palliative care unit.

“We are proud to be delivering better health services, closer to home, for residents of Adelaide’s northeast.”

Mr Wade’s defence comes after the State Government ruled out privatising SA Pathology in April, after first threatening to sell off the public pathology agency in 2018.

Opposition health spokesperson Chris Picton said the Liberal party is “addicted to privatisation”.

“Before the election, Steven Marshall promised he did not have a privatisation agenda. But since the election we have seen privatisation after privatisation,” he said.

“Particularly facing the pandemic, our health services must stay in public hands focused on people, not profits.

“The bottom line is privatisation of health services is bad news for patients, who will face higher costs and cuts to services.”