The EPAS IT project has blown out by another $14 million, bringing the new total cost to $422 million.
This comes after it was revealed in Premier Weatherill’s Budget that there had been a $40 million blowout in Oracle, another Health IT project.
“Premier Weatherill and his Labor Government’s handling of IT projects has lurched form disaster to disaster over recent years,” said Shadow Health Minister Rob Lucas.
“EPAS has already had a controversial history as it was originally intended to be rolled out to all hospitals but that has now been reduced to 12 hospitals.
“The bottom line is that Premier Weatherill’s Government is spending more money to deliver EPAS to fewer hospitals than originally promised.
“Premier Weatherill’s Government has a history of making and breaking promises – South Australians deserve a government with better priorities that they can also trust.”
Further problems with EPAS can now be revealed:
• There has been a further delay of 11 months to May 2015 in the expected completion date for the rollout to 12 hospitals
• Minister Snelling refused to guarantee EPAS would be rolled out to the Repatriation Hospital, Port Augusta Hospital and Lyell McEwin Hospital before March next year as promised
• The reason for the recent $14 million blowout was because the Minister forgot to include an allocation for CPI increases in the total budget cost
• The Minister has had to appoint yet another senior executive (Director, E-Health Programme) to help resolve the IT chaos in his Department
• Some of the claimed savings from EPAS will not be achieved, which will lead to a further blowout in the total cost of EPAS
“South Australian families will be furious at Premier Weatherill and Minister Snelling’s financial mismanagement and waste of tens of millions of dollars at a time when the Minister is cutting or closing so many programs or services across the board.”