Leading Australian private hospital company Ramsay Health Care has announced the termination of its COVID-19 pandemic agreement with the Western Australian Department of Health.
The agreement was one of several Ramsay made with state governments in response to the pandemic, Under the agreement, and following the shutdown of elective surgery, Ramsay's private hospitals and their staff were integrated into the public hospital system.
Restrictions on elective surgery have been gradually lifted as the number of new COVID-19 cases has declined. Western Australia has not reported a case of community transmitted COVID-19 in several weeks.
Ramsay said the termination of the Western Australian agreement includes a right for the state's Department of Health to direct it for a 12 month period to sign a new arrangement on the same terms as the original agreement.
"This right can be exercised if the Department or the Commonwealth Government reasonably form the view that this is necessary to ensure that the public and private health sectors can respond successfully to the COVID-19 pandemic," said the company in a statement.