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The hospital will be under the direct control of the Northern Sydney Local Health District, which oversees other major public healthcare services including the Royal North Shore Hospital.

Minns said the transition would likely occur in mid-2026, “when we can integrate all of the staffing as well as … all the backend logistics and processes inside that hospital into our public system because we have to make them consistent with … all the other major hospitals across NSW”.

Senior doctors warned that removing private services would result in services closing, longer surgical waitlists and increased pressure on the public system. Australian Medical Association NSW President Dr Kathryn Austin said any suggestion the hospital would become a fully public operation was “a slap in the face” to the community.

Minns’ office said the government would “also consult closely with clinicians to determine future clinical services and an operating model, including the role of private services in the hospital footprint”.

Minns’ office said all clinical and support staff working at the hospital would be offered jobs by NSW Health at the hospital.

In April, a NSW auditor-general’s report found the hospital failed to act on warnings about risks to patient safety and outcomes. A separate independent probe found staff had a “heightened awareness” of the hospital’s contract with the government, which could create tensions between financial imperatives and clinical priorities.

NSW Treasurer Daniel Mookhey said the agreement delivered a publicly run hospital that puts patients before profit for the local community and at $190 million was value for money.

“The government has been clear all along that there will be no windfall gains for Healthscope,” Mookhey said.

The Australian Salaried Medical Officers’ Association (ASMOF) NSW welcomed the news, with President Dr Nicholas Spooner saying the transition to public control would be critical to addressing long-standing understaffing, overwork and exhaustion issues.

“The people of NSW expect their government to lead, invest and deliver in public health, not delegate it to private providers who only care about profits,” Spooner said.

Health Minister Ryan Park said this was the beginning of a transition that would not be without challenges, “but patient safety sits at the very heart of this hand back to public ownership”.

More to come