District health boards are being offered contracts with ACC at prices well below actual costs, this month's Southern District Health Board's hospitals' advisory committee meeting was told.
Chief operating officer (Otago) Vivian Blake said in three contracts with ACC which had come up for renegotiation recently, the prices offered were either a nil increase or 1.3%.
Her national colleagues agreed it was not good enough as costs were running "way above" what was being offered.
The three contracts Mrs Blake referred to were those for non-acute rehabilitation, active rehabilitation and community nursing.
Committee chairman Paul Menzies suggested there could be some instances where the board should "exit the service".
Mrs Blake said the board was bearing the cost of a 20% reduction in what ACC paid for high-technology imaging.
Dr Branko Sijnja suggested CT scanning for ACC patients could be shifted to the private sector.
The financial report on diagnostic services to the committee showed the ACC revenue was down $34,000 for March and $182,000 for the first nine months of the year.
Mrs Blake said the chief operating officers were communicating with ACC on the issue.
