Australia, insurance, car, home, live, holidays

Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-chief executive Peter Wertheim.Credit:NSWJBD

The second draft of the contentious bill gave religious health facilities the same power as religious schools to discriminate on the basis of religion when it comes to choosing staff. But Mr Wertheim said this should be extended to choosing board members,as well as service delivery to patients and clients.

For example,a Greek Orthodox aged care home should be able to preference people of that faith when admitting patients,he said,and a Jewish facility should have the same right to reject people of other faiths when selecting board members.

"The bill currently allows such institutions to give preference in employment,but not in service delivery,or for the purpose of meeting religious needs,but not linguistic or cultural needs,"Mr Wertheim said.

"There should be express provision for faith-based hospitals,aged care facilities and accommodation providers ... to be able to continue to preference people of their own faith in order to meet those needs."

Just like schools,he said,religious hospitals and aged care homes provided their services for the public good and saved the government money,and"they should be treated the same". It was"difficult to follow"why the bill did not treat them identically,he said.

Mr Wertheim said it was not about allowing religious facilities to turn away people who did not subscribe to the relevant faith,but about being able to"preference"people when that was necessary.'It's positive discrimination,not negative,"he said,and was especially important for smaller denominations.

Addressing the National Press Club last month,Mr Porter said in the"real world"operations of such facilities,religious hospitals"do not appear"to discriminate when accepting patients,and"with very few exceptions"neither did religious aged care homes.

However,the government is undertaking another consultation period until late January and will listen to feedback from religious organisations,as well as opponents of the bill.

As theHerald andThe Age reported on Sunday,major church groups including the Anglican Diocese of Sydney have warmed to the government's "improved" second draft bill. Their objections to the first draft prompted the government to delay the bill over the summer break.

License this article