Health expenditure Australia 2018-19
Publication
Release Date:
Topic: Health & welfare expenditure
Citation
AIHW (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare) (2020) Health expenditure Australia 2018-19, AIHW, Australian Government, accessed 4 June 2026, doi:10.25816/ysem-1g13.
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Regular reporting of national health expenditure is vital to understanding the health system and its relationship to the economy as whole. In 2018–19:
- Total health spending was $195.7 billion, equating to $7,772 per person.
- Health spending increased by 3.1%, which was slightly lower than the decade average of 3.5%.
- The majority of health spending went on hospitals (40.4%) and primary health care (33.5%).
- Health spending accounted for 10% of overall economic activity.
This report includes data from before the COVID-19 pandemic. For data and information that relates to COVID-19, please see our COVID-19 resources.
- ISBN: 978-1-76054-617-5
- DOI: 10.25816/ysem-1g13
- Cat. no: HWE 80
- Pages: 72
Findings from this report:
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Total health expenditure in 2018–19 was $195.7 billion, a real increase of 3.1% over the year
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Expenditure per person increased by 1.5% to $7,772
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Spending on hospitals was $79.0 billion, an increase of 3.7% compared with the previous year
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Private health insurers spent on average $1,532 per person covered by a private hospital insurance policy