❓ Mr. Cook questions the increase in parking fees at Fiona Stanley Hospital compared to initial estimates. The Minister for Health explains the decision to align fees with nearby St John of God Murdoch to prevent parking arbitrage.
AnsweredQoN 804Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
FIONA
STANLEY HOSPITAL — PARKING FEES
804. Mr R.H. COOK to the Minister for
Health:
I refer to the parking fee increases
at Fiona Stanley Hospital, which are being charged at $3 an hour or $21 a day.
Previously, patients at the Shenton Park campus were informed that parking
would be $2 an hour, capped at $10 a day.
(1) Why did the
parking fees increase between the time that patients at the Shenton Park campus
received information about costs and the opening of the hospital?
(2) Has the
Department of Health acted in concert with other operators in the Murdoch area
to control parking fees?
STANLEY HOSPITAL — PARKING FEES
804. Mr R.H. COOK to the Minister for
Health:
I refer to the parking fee increases
at Fiona Stanley Hospital, which are being charged at $3 an hour or $21 a day.
Previously, patients at the Shenton Park campus were informed that parking
would be $2 an hour, capped at $10 a day.
(1) Why did the
parking fees increase between the time that patients at the Shenton Park campus
received information about costs and the opening of the hospital?
(2) Has the
Department of Health acted in concert with other operators in the Murdoch area
to control parking fees?
AnswerView source ↗
(1)–(2) That
is a very good word. It was recommended to me that parking fees at Fiona
Stanley Hospital be the same as fees at the other two tertiary hospitals. As
members know, currently the day rate for visitor parking at Sir Charles
Gairdner Hospital, for example, is $3.60 an hour. It was recommended that when
Fiona Stanley Hospital opened, fees be set at $2.00 an hour. My concern was
that right next door at St John of God Murdoch Hospital, with parking adjacent
to Fiona Stanley Hospital, parking fees were $3 an hour and a maximum of $21 a
day. I therefore instructed the health department not to make parking fees at
Fiona Stanley $2.00 an hour, but to make them the same as the fees at St John.
We did not want the visitors at St John to use our car parking at Fiona Stanley
Hospital because our parking fees were much cheaper.
Mr
R.H. Cook : You could just stop them.
Dr
K.D. HAMES : How do we stop them? Hon Ken Travers said, ''Why don't
we just work out where visitors are going?'' What should we do? Should
we have a person at every gate asking people which hospital they are going to
and say, ''Excuse me, you can't park here if you're
going to Murdoch''? That would be ridiculous. After we had made that
decision and until recently those were to be the fees. Then St John increased its
fees to $3.60 an hour and $21 maximum a day. We did not want the opposite
situation with people at St John's car park. We do not want different
parking fees at hospitals right next to each other. In the same way, we did not
want people using the train paying zero parking fees so that everyone parked at
our hospital and then caught the train. Parking fees at those two hospitals
must be the same, and that is why we made that decision. The initial fee was
set before the hospital opened. As occurs at Sir Charles Gairdner, for patients
who have to go to the hospital a lot, there is a set of rules for who we call ''frequent
flyers'' who have to visit the hospital a lot whereby those fees are
reduced to a much lower level. In fact, those who go to the rehabilitation
service for more than, I think, three days, are charged the original amounts,
which are $2.00 an hour and $10.00 a day.
is a very good word. It was recommended to me that parking fees at Fiona
Stanley Hospital be the same as fees at the other two tertiary hospitals. As
members know, currently the day rate for visitor parking at Sir Charles
Gairdner Hospital, for example, is $3.60 an hour. It was recommended that when
Fiona Stanley Hospital opened, fees be set at $2.00 an hour. My concern was
that right next door at St John of God Murdoch Hospital, with parking adjacent
to Fiona Stanley Hospital, parking fees were $3 an hour and a maximum of $21 a
day. I therefore instructed the health department not to make parking fees at
Fiona Stanley $2.00 an hour, but to make them the same as the fees at St John.
We did not want the visitors at St John to use our car parking at Fiona Stanley
Hospital because our parking fees were much cheaper.
Mr
R.H. Cook : You could just stop them.
Dr
K.D. HAMES : How do we stop them? Hon Ken Travers said, ''Why don't
we just work out where visitors are going?'' What should we do? Should
we have a person at every gate asking people which hospital they are going to
and say, ''Excuse me, you can't park here if you're
going to Murdoch''? That would be ridiculous. After we had made that
decision and until recently those were to be the fees. Then St John increased its
fees to $3.60 an hour and $21 maximum a day. We did not want the opposite
situation with people at St John's car park. We do not want different
parking fees at hospitals right next to each other. In the same way, we did not
want people using the train paying zero parking fees so that everyone parked at
our hospital and then caught the train. Parking fees at those two hospitals
must be the same, and that is why we made that decision. The initial fee was
set before the hospital opened. As occurs at Sir Charles Gairdner, for patients
who have to go to the hospital a lot, there is a set of rules for who we call ''frequent
flyers'' who have to visit the hospital a lot whereby those fees are
reduced to a much lower level. In fact, those who go to the rehabilitation
service for more than, I think, three days, are charged the original amounts,
which are $2.00 an hour and $10.00 a day.
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