It comes after the Otago Daily Times revealed the government was pushing ahead with a plan to cut the number of ICU and high-dependency unit beds on opening of the new Dunedin hospital from 30 to 20.
Mr Brown told the ODT yesterday this meant the total number of ICU beds had not changed.
Labour leader Chris Hipkins said: "Not content with hiding key details from the Dunedin public, Mr Brown is now doubling down and claiming nothing has changed".
"That’s despite the original proposal having Dunedin hospital opening with 30 ICU beds, and his plan saying it will open at 20 ICU beds."
Association of Salaried Medical Specialists chief executive Sarah Dalton was gobsmacked by the announcement.
"It’s head-in-the-sand stuff as far as we’re concerned."
The existing Dunedin Hospital has 20 ICU beds - Ms Dalton said this should be a minimum, particularly if the country experienced another "Covid-like event".
Ms Dalton said yesterday promises to eventually increase the number of ICU beds to 40 were vague and would not address the immediate need upon opening the hospital.
"The fact is the beds won’t be there on opening, and health inflation tends to run higher than regular inflation," she said.
"It will simply cost more down the line if done this way."
"Shelling" hospital builds had become a "distressing pattern" for successive governments.
"You might recall when the new Christchurch Hospital opened, there were parts of it unable to be staffed, so they couldn’t be opened.
Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora (HNZ) infrastructure delivery lead Blake Lepper’s briefings in January said HNZ’s approach to cut the number of ICU beds upon opening was "aligned with the Australian state of Victoria and validation has also been made against the Queensland state approach".
Ms Dalton said she would like to see the modelling.
"My guess is it’s about cost, not best clinical practice."
Mr Brown said having the ability to increase beds as needed "will future-proof the new Dunedin hospital, so it is able to meet patients’ needs now and into the future".
New Zealand Nurses’ Organisation president Ann Daniels said the government was putting budgets before the needs of patients.
"Reducing the number of ICU beds will not only impact the entire new hospital because there will be a flow-on effect, but it will also impact other South Island hospital services.
"It flies in the face of Mr Brown’s claim that he was bringing certainty to the new hospital build and ensuring it was future-proofed."
Labour’s acting health spokesman Peeni Henare accused Mr Brown of hiding the bed cuts.
In January, the government announced it was building a scaled-back version of the new Dunedin hospital at the former Cadbury’s site for $1.88 billion.
"Mr Brown then took over as health minister and swooped into Dunedin trying to act the hero on the hospital. But he failed to share this important information about downgrading the number of ICU beds.
"That is hugely disingenuous. I can see why locals, including the former head of the emergency department, are angry."
