THE HON WARREN SNOWDON MP
Minister for Indigenous Health, Rural and Regional Health
and Regional Services Delivery
Media contact: Paul Williams on 0407 990 723 or paul.williams@health.gov.au
MEDIA RELEASE
16 October 2009
SIGHT-SAVING PROJECT TO CONTINUE IN ALICE SPRINGS
Indigenous Australians in central Australia would continue to receive sight-saving eye care, the
Minister for Indigenous Health, Rural and Regional Health and Regional Services Delivery,
Warren Snowdon, said today.
The Minister said the Rudd Government would provide more than $153 000 this year to ensure
the ongoing operation of the Central Australian Integrated Eye Health Project.
“Through this project, we will establish an eye health clinic within the Alice Springs Hospital to
improve the provision of eye health services to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
“I want to acknowledge and thank our partners in this important work, including the Fred
Hollows Foundation, the Eye Foundation, the Anyinginyi Health Aboriginal Corporation,
Central Australian Aboriginal Congress and the Northern Territory Government,” he said.
The Minister said a number of intensive eye surgery sessions had been funded through the
project in the interim in order to reduce eye surgical waiting lists in the region.
He said he was delighted to make this announcement at one of the Alice Springs Town Camps,
in the presence of some of the 364 people who had received surgery under the scheme.
“It is an absolute tragedy that Australians—especially those living in Indigenous communities—
have suffered from impaired vision or even become blind for want of access to surgery.
“That’s why, the Rudd Government committed itself to closing the appalling gap between
Indigenous and non-Indigenous health care in the country,” he said.
The Minister said the Central Australian Integrated Eye Health Project received funding through
the Improving Eye and Ear Health Services for Indigenous Australians for Better Education and
Employment Outcomes measure, which had received $58.3 million over four years.
He said the measure included more than $16 million for a major increase in services to tackle
trachoma in Indigenous communities in the Northern Territory, Western Australia, South
Australia—and other states should trachoma be identified there.
It also provided funding of nearly $6.5 million to expand the Visiting Optometrist Scheme
(VOS) to better target primary eye care for Indigenous Australians in remote and very remote
communities.
NEWS 
