The Northern Hospital has become the first major hospital in Victoria to have its funding doubled since 1999 with overall hospital budgets increasing by 83 per cent over the period.

Health Minister Bronwyn Pike said Peninsula Health's budget had also as good as doubled over the same timeframe.

Ms Pike made the comments as she released the list of all hospital budget increases for the 2006/07 financial year.

She said Northern Health's budget bottom line had increased by 106.5 per cent, from $84.08 million in 1999/2000 to $173.6 million for the next financial year.

Peninsula Health's budget had almost doubled as well, from $101.7 million in 1999/2000 to $203.3 million now.

And the Royal Children's Hospital this year would get $191.46 million—$10 million more than the $181.5 million the Royal Children's and Royal Women's combined received in 1999.

Ms Pike announced Victoria's public hospitals would treat an extra 37,000 inpatients this financial year as part of a $2 billion increase in the State Budget.

The funding increase included a $280 million boost to the hospitals' budget bottom lines.

Releasing a blueprint detailing every hospital's share of the bottom-line funding, Ms Pike said the Government would spend more than $9 billion on health and aged care services in 2006/07.

'Our funding will guide the expansion and further modernisation of Victoria's hospital system over the coming years.

'Extra funding over the next year will enable hospitals to focus on reducing waiting times for emergency patients—which the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare in its Australian Hospital Statistics 2004/05 says are already the best in Australia.

'The money will also help treatment time for elective surgery patients.

'Hospitals will also be asked to focus on stabilising or reducing bypass and $27.5 million extra will be used to provide community-based treatment for people with chronic and complex conditions as an alternative to hospital.'

'Initiatives to be funded over the next year include the opening of the Alfred Centre for elective surgery in November and $20.4 million to support growth in renal dialysis, radiotherapy, chemotherapy and blood services.

'An extra $12.1 million will fund six extra beds in hospital Intensive Care Units, plus four neonatal intensive care cots and 12 special care nursery cots.'

Ms Pike said an extra $4.5 million would be spent on expanding hospital outpatient treatment and $23.2 million on expanded mental health services.

As part of the overall increase, $42.5 million extra—up from a $28.8 million boost last year—would be spent on helping relieve the pressure on hospital emergency departments and streamlining the treatment of their patients.

The bottom line operating budgets exclude capital funding and non-recurrent expenditure.