NSW Health has spent $1.9 million on legal expenses relating to the Calvary Mater hospital's public-private partnership (PPP) since 2018.
The figure was revealed in documents tabled with the parliamentary inquiry into the Mater mould and maintenance scandal.
Inquiry chair Amanda Cohn said it was "devastating that this failed public-private partnership has resulted in nearly $2 million of taxpayer money going to lawyers".
Dr Cohn, the Greens NSW spokesperson for health, said that money could "instead have been spent on hospital infrastructure or patient care".
The documents also revealed that SafeWork NSW had issued 14 "section 155 notices" over work health and safety matters at the Mater from March last year to May this year.
This included six notices to Hunter New England Health and five to Calvary Health Care.
Three notices were issued to Honeywell, the US corporate giant to which Novacare Health subcontracts the hospital's maintenance.
The hospital's malfunctioning PPP involves the Sydney-based company Novacare Health and NSW Health.
Dr Cohn said nine of the section 155 notices had been issued this year.
"This reflects the seriousness of the safety risks for staff and patients at the Mater," she said.
A section 155 notice is a legally binding request issued under the Work Health and Safety Act.
It requires written information, documents, or evidence to help an investigation or monitor compliance.
NSW Health Infrastructure has commissioned consultancy firm Jacobs Group to assess the Mater's buildings.
The hospital's ageing and dysfunctional heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) system is part of this audit.
Documents show the HVAC was a key factor in the hospital's mould contamination, as it lacked humidity control and was not properly maintained.
The audit began in March, with the final report expected to be complete by July.
It will provide recommendations for required remediation works to fix the Mater's deadly mould problem.
A SafeWork NSW document said it would "review the findings and recommendations and consider whether any further regulatory action is required".
Meanwhile, the Clinical Excellence Commission, an arm of NSW Health, has released new guidance on "reducing the risk of aspergillosis in hospitals".
This related to specialist care needed for "patients at high risk of invasive fungal disease".
The Newcastle Herald has revealed that at least 16 invasive fungal infections occurred at the Mater from 2019 to 2024. These infections have a high mortality rate.
Additionally, 120 families have registered for a class action into alleged mould-related deaths at the Mater, most of whom lost loved ones to pneumonia.
The commission's guidance was aimed at caring for patients at high risk of invasive fungal disease.
This included cancer and haematology patients, along with those in intensive care and transplant units.
Patients at the Mater, the Hunter's main cancer hospital, are at high risk from invasive fungal infections from the deadly Aspergillus fumigatus mould detected at the hospital.
Dr Cohn said it was "a good thing that NSW Health has sought up-to-date expert advice for dealing with fungal hazards".
"But it does raise the question whether best practice was being followed up until now," she said.
The commission's guidance confirmed that Aspergillus grows in "damp and/or poorly ventilated environments" and caused infections in "immunocompromised patients".
"These fungi ... can proliferate within HVAC systems when moisture is present," the guidance said.
