The first is the claim by NSW Health officials that the adoption of a case mix funding platform – as outlined by the Federal Government – could lead to the closure of at least 100 smaller community hospitals across this state.

If that is the case then there is no doubt that our region would be hit and hit hard.

Tens of thousands of North West and New England residents rely on smaller community hospitals as their first point of contact for urgent medical care.

These hospitals also provide a host of other medical services and play an integral role in the lives of their communities – even though they might not be the venues of a significant number of case mix “procedures”.

We suspect that the alarmist claims about impending bush hospital closures being circulated under the guise of breaking news yesterday were furphies of the first water.

Senior state health bureaucrats – who weren’t named in the media reports – are doing their best to undermine the credibility of a reform program that looks set to dismantle a host of public service empires that have taken decades to build.

It stands to reason that the Federal Government would not begin its campaign to make the hospital system better by arbitrarily closing 100 facilities in country NSW. The Prime Minister’s office has even said so.

It has guaranteed that regional health services will be retained and that any funding model would be weighted to take the needs of country residents into account. We accept that point.

What we all need to know is the detail.

How is this going to be done?

The other question that needs to be answered – yesterday if not sooner – is what impact will Mr Rudd’s grand design have on the redevelopment of the Tamworth hospital.