Shadow health minister Senator Anne Ruston has slammed the treatment of the Centre for Community-Driven Research as dishonest and a breach of an election commitment.
Correspondence obtained by BioPharmaDispatch has revealed the repeated misrepresentation of the organisation's commitment to implement the Patient Pathways Program.
Labor committed to providing the program with $2.47 million over three years from July 2022. However, implementation of the commitment was delayed and subsequently included in October's 2023-24 Budget.
In the interim, the Albanese government offered $150,000 to the Centre for Community-Driven Research (CCDR) to administer the program from July to December last year, pending confirmation of the three-year funding commitment in the Budget.
The $150,000 fell well short of what was required to maintain the program. In response, CCDR offered to administer the program with no funding, with the Department of Health and Aged Care (department) directly contracting patient groups.
However, not only did the department not directly engage the patient groups, its officials have consistently misrepresented CCDR's proposal as 'withdrawing' from the program.
The approach and conduct of officials have led CCDR to lodge a formal complaint.
Senator Ruston has slammed the approach to CCDR and the claims regarding its proposal that was contained in correspondence to health minister Mark Butler in July last year.
"It is extremely disappointing that Minister Butler has blatantly misrepresented the Centre for Community-Driven Research and compromised their ability to provide support to patients through their Patient Pathways Program," said Senator Ruston.
"Led by the CCDR, the Program provides critical support to patients and their families by connecting them with the most suitable health services for their condition, and even opening up opportunities for patients to participate in clinical trials.
"The Minister committed to funding the Program for an additional three years beyond the initial pilot funded by the former Coalition Government.
"Now it is apparent that the Labor Government is taking away the program from CCDR, under a blanket of complete dishonesty, and are seeking to provide this funding to a different organisation.
"This is not only a shameful broken promise, but it is also completely unfair treatment of an organisation who has led the development of this important support program for patients and their families."
