• $18 million to purchase 60,000 episodes of care at St John Urgent Care Clinics to immediately reduce pressure on hospital emergency departments.

• $73.2 million to expand the St John WA Urgent Care Clinic model with three new fully equipped clinics.

• Low-priority ambulance patients to go directly to St John Urgent Care Clinics.

• Up to 20 per cent of ambulance presentations diverted from public hospitals.

WA Liberal Leader Libby Mettam today reaffirmed her party’s commitment and plans to immediately relieve Western Australia’s ambulance ramping crisis if elected to government on Saturday.

Ambulance ramping at WA public hospitals reached an all-time February record with ambulances spending 4827 hours parked up in hospital driveways, up from 1000 hours a month in 2017 when Roger Cook, in Opposition, declared it a crisis.

The WA Liberals plan would see ambulances with low-priority patients redirected to St John Urgent Care Clinics for treatment, with figures provided by St John Ambulance indicating this will immediately reduce ambulance presentations at public hospitals by up to 20 per cent.

Ms Mettam said the lack of any election commitment or plan from Labor to reduce record ramping after the election spoke volumes about Premier Roger Cook’s priorities.

“St John Urgent Care Clinics are specifically designed and equipped to provide immediate treatment for injuries and illnesses such as fractures, sprains, and minor infections and other lower-acuity cases that do not require the resources of a full emergency department,” she said.

“It is just common sense for a government to partner with St John to use the capacity and expertise available in these state-of-the-art facilities.

“This initiative would give the health system breathing space while we fast-track investment in new hospitals, expanding bed numbers, creating transitional beds and reinvigorating neglected health prevention services.

“We will also build capacity, implement reforms and incentivise a local health workforce to address bed block in our health system.

“Ambulance ramping is the canary in the coal mine when it comes to the state of our hospital system and the canary is very unwell.”

Ms Mettam said health had suffered seven years of neglect at the hands of Labor.

The numbers say everything, in eight years Labor spent $20.5 billion on transport infrastructure, but a mere $2.1 billion on health infrastructure,” she said.

“This mess sits squarely at Roger Cook’s feet, as the former Minister for Health and now the Premier and he is gaslighting voters when he tells them we have a health system to be proud of.

“Mr Cook seems to believe ambulance ramping will magically fix itself, or someone else will fix it for him, while he’s building a racetrack no-one wants.

“The WA Liberals ambulance ramping fix will cost $91 million; Roger’s Burswood racetrack will cost twice that at $217 million and the National Rugby League deal he shook hands on will cost three times that at $320 million.

“When West Australians vote they need to remember exactly where their health and welfare sits on Mr Cook’s priority list.”

Only the WA Liberals have a plan to fix WA’s healthcare system. The WA Liberals plan to heal our health system includes:

• Holding a Royal Commission into WA’s health system, to learn what has gone wrong, and give physicians the opportunity to speak up.

• Redeveloping Royal Perth Hospital to modernise facilities and expand capacity.

• Building the Women and Babies Hospital at QEII, following expert clinical advice.

• Activating 60 unused beds at Joondalup Health Campus to ease pressure on emergency departments.

• Fast-tracking the completion of Tom Price Hospital and Margaret River Hospital to improve regional healthcare access.

• Expanding transitional care beds to free up hospital capacity.

• Introducing an Elective Surgery Guarantee, ensuring timely procedures and clearing Labor’s backlog.

• Expanding St John Urgent Care Clinics and funding 60,000 urgent care appointments to reduce hospital overcrowding.

• Increasing community-based pharmacy services to improve access to essential medications.

• Providing free GP follow-up appointments within seven days of hospital discharge to prevent avoidable readmissions.

• Investing $40 million for suicide prevention programs, targeting high-risk communities.

• Investing $40 million for early intervention mental health services, supporting young people and vulnerable groups.

• Providing $6 million to expand Kids Helpline, ensuring every young Western Australian has access to crisis support.

• Fully funding the Earbus program ($26.8 million) to combat WA’s world-leading rates of middle ear disease in Aboriginal children.

• Investing $19 million in mobile regional dental care, ensuring access to essential dental services.

• Providing $6 million to make the Meningococcal B vaccine free for babies, teens, and at-risk groups.