What You Need to Know About the Biggest Health Boost in Australian History

The Australian Federal Budget 2023, announced by Treasurer Jim Chalmers on 9 May 2023, has delivered significant investments and reforms in digital health, aiming to improve health outcomes, access and quality of care for all Australians.

General Practice Funding: One of the key highlights of the budget is the $3.5 billion to increase the “bulk billing” incentives for general practitioners (GPs) who offer free consultations to eligible patients. This is one of the "largest ever" funding boosts to Medicare and aims to make GP appointments more affordable and accessible for nearly 12 million Australians, including children under 16, pensioners and other concession card holders.

“Bulk billing” is when a doctor accepts a Medicare rebate from the federal government as a complete payment for a consultation and doesn't charge patients an additional "gap" fee for the service. The bulk billing incentive is an extra payment that GPs can claim on top of the Medicare rebate for bulk billing eligible patients.

Chronic Illnesses: Making common medicines cheaper by allowing Australians to buy 2 months’ worth of medicine for the price of a single (one month) prescription for more than 300 common PBS medicines (Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, Australian government’s subsidies for medications). This will halve patients’ visits to the GP and pharmacist – saving patients an estimated $1.6 billion and freeing up millions of GP appointments.

Increasing the tobacco excise by 15% from 1 July 2023, which is expected to raise $8.7 billion over four years and reduce smoking rates by 6% by 2027. Investing $263.8 million over four years to establish a national lung cancer screening program, which will target high-risk groups and improve early detection and treatment outcomes. Expanding the "Tackling Indigenous Smoking" program with $141.2 million over four years to prevent the uptake and reduce the prevalence of smoking and vaping among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people

Increasing funding to combat rheumatic heart disease in high-risk communities ($14.2 million) and improving renal services with funding ($45 million) for up to 30 four-chair dialysis units in up to 30 sites.

Digital Health: Jim Chalmers has allocated $824.4 million in funding for digital health, including modernising the My Health Record system and funding other digital health initiatives. This will provide health professionals with the digital and data tools needed to provide improved and more coordinated care, as well as empower patients to access and manage their own health information.

Another major announcement is the $111.8 million funding for electronic-prescription delivery infrastructure and services, including mandating the use of e-prescribing for high-risk and high-cost medicines subsidised under the pharmaceutical benefits scheme. This will enhance patient safety, convenience and choice, as well as reduce medication errors and fraud.

In addition, the budget allocates $101.6 million over five years to support and uplift cyber security in Australia, which is crucial for protecting the privacy and integrity of health data and systems. The budget also extends critical mental health and suicide prevention services, with $134.1 million over four years for the Office of the eSafety Commissioner, which provides online safety education and resources for Australians.

Artificial Intelligence and Start-ups: The budget also supports the development and adoption of emerging technologies such as quantum and artificial intelligence (AI), with $101.2 million over five years to help businesses integrate these technologies into their operations. A $392 million Industry Growth Program to support start-ups and SMEs to commercialise their ideas and grow their operations. This includes grants and mentorship opportunities. This will create new opportunities and challenges for the digital health sector, as well as foster innovation and collaboration across industries.

Australia achieved its first budget surplus in 15 years in 2022-23, thanks to a combination of higher-than-expected tax revenue from booming commodity prices and lower-than-expected government spending. However, the surplus could be short-lived, as the government projected a return to deficit in 2023-24 and beyond, due to the slowing global economy, rising inflation, and cost-of-living pressures.

The healthcare investments in the Australian federal budget 2023 have raised some key questions and criticisms from various stakeholders. Some of the main issues are:

• How will the government address the workforce shortages and urgent gaps in the mental health and suicide prevention system, which will receive $2.3 billion over four years?
• How will the government tackle the rising rates of smoking and vaping, which will be subject to stronger legislation, enforcement, education and support, costing $1.8 billion over four years?
• Has the budget done enough to solve systemic issues in healthcare, especially given the surplus?
• Are there any other Healthcare areas missed out in the budget?

Please share your thoughts in the comments below.