Estimated expenditure on health services for Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander people rose between 1998-99 and 2001-02,
from $1.4 billion to $1.8 billion, according to a report released
today by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW).
The share of national health spending going to Indigenous people
increased from 2.5% to 2.8%.
Expenditures on health for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
peoples, 2001-02 shows that per person health spending on
Indigenous people in 2001-02 was $3,901 compared with $3,308 for
non-Indigenous people, a ratio of 1.18 to 1.
Head of the AIHW's Health and Welfare Expenditure Unit, Tony
Hynes, said that given the uncertainties and complexities
surrounding these measurements, 'it's fair to say that the relative
position of the two populations, in terms of health expenditure,
had changed little since 1998-99, when the ratio was 1.22 to
1'.
'There are considerable differences in the mix and relative
costs of health goods and services used by Indigenous Australians
compared with non-Indigenous Australians.
'The overall spending ratio therefore does not necessarily
indicate that Indigenous people use more health services. In fact
many services to Indigenous people are more costly to deliver, both
because of geography, and because many health services have to be
provided in different ways to the mainstream so that Indigenous
people will use them', Mr Hynes said.
'A greater proportion of the Indigenous population lives in
remote and very remote regions (26% compared with 2%). The costs
involved in just getting services to such areas are much higher
than for more settled regions.'
'But even in urban areas, many Indigenous people are reluctant
to use mainstream services. Our report shows that Indigenous
Australians are relatively low users of Medicare and the
Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, at 39% and 33% respectively of the
non-Indigenous average use. This, too, has not changed much since
1998-99, and is offset to some extent by increased access to
specific programs such as Aboriginal Community-Controlled Health
Services, and other community health services targeted to
Indigenous people.'
'It seems that much of health expenditure growth overall between
1998-99 and 2001-02 was in goods and services which Indigenous
people use less of and non-Indigenous people use more of-such as
private hospital services, pharmaceuticals, and dental and other
professional health services.'
'This is probably because only 15-20% of Indigenous Australians
have private health insurance, which commonly pays for a large
proportion of these services' Mr Hynes said.
Mr Hynes said that any analysis of per-person spending on health
services for Indigenous people should bear in mind the
comparatively poor health of Indigenous people.
Indigenous mortality rates are three times that of the general
community and Indigenous people die on average 18 years younger
than the average for all Australians.
20 July 2005
Further information: Mr Tony Hynes, AIHW, 02
6244 1160, or tel. 0407 915 851
For media copies of the report: Publications
Officer, AIHW, tel. 02 6244 1032.
Availability: Check the AIHW Publications
Catalogue for availability of the Expenditures on health
for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples,
2001-02.