Media Release | 9 September 2026
Hon. Julie Freeman MLC
Shadow Minister Assisting the Shadow Minister for Regional Development
Hon. Rob Horstman MLC
Shadow Minister for Emergency Services
Shadow Minister Assisting the Shadow Minister for Regional Development, Hon Julie Freeman MLC, has slammed the government for continuing to ignore regional health concerns, following repeated delays in transferring patients with serious medical conditions, including children.
“Yesterday we heard the shocking story of a ten-year-old Karratha boy who had already spent six days in hospital waiting for an RFDS flight to Perth for surgery. Today, another alarming case has emerged: an eight-year-old East Kimberley boy with serious head injuries took two days to get to Perth, after similar delays.”
These examples expose the Cook Labor Government’s failure to resource regional health and patient retrieval services. Ms Freeman said regional families should be able to expect timely access to care, regardless of where they live.
“Any delay in receiving appropriate medical treatment results in prolonged suffering and delayed recovery. The Cook Labor Government must prioritise either ensuring the medical treatment regional families need is available where they live, or ensuring prompt transfer to the nearest facility with the expertise required.
“Anything less is unacceptable. Regional Western Australians are tired of being an afterthought for this government. They deserve a health system that gets them the care they need, when they need it, just like in Perth.”
Ms Freeman said these two cases were symptomatic of a broader failure to deliver adequate regional health services.
“For families in regional WA, distance can already mean the difference between accessing care locally and having to travel hundreds or thousands of kilometres. Regional families should not be left waiting days for the care their children need.”
Shadow Minister for Emergency Services Hon Rob Horstman MLC said the delay pointed to a retrieval system stretched well beyond its capacity.
“This is not about blaming the Royal Flying Doctor Service. Their crews do extraordinary work every single day across an enormous State,” Mr Horstman said.
“This is about asking whether they have been given the resources and capacity necessary to meet the demands being placed upon them. The State Government needs to explain what it is doing to ensure RFDS and regional patient retrieval services have sufficient aircraft, crews, backup capacity and funding to meet demand.”
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