Population and Health Expenditure
Total health expenditure in 2001-02, from all sources, was $66.6 billion, 9.3% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) or $3,397 per person. Public acute care hospitals have the highest expenditure at $15.3 billion or 26.9% of total recurrent health expenditure, followed by medical services with $10.3 billion (18%) and pharmaceuticals with $8.1 billion (14.2%).
Expenditure on aids and appliances is growing at the fastest rate, closely followed by expenditure on pharmaceuticals.
In terms of health expenditure as a proportion of GDP, Australia spent less than the United States, Canada, France and Germany, but more than Japan, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
Australia is a large country and its resident population of 19.976 million, while located primarily in its cities and coastal fringes, is also spread across the continent in rural, remote and Indigenous communities. This presents a range of service delivery challenges given the large distances between centres and the lack of infrastructure.
Last updated: 28 May, 2008