Through Medicare, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people can receive Indigenous‑specific health checks from their doctor, as well as referrals for Indigenous‑specific follow‑up services.
- In 2020–21, 237,000 Indigenous Australians had one of these health checks (27% of the projected population).
- The proportion of Indigenous health check patients who had an Indigenous‑specific follow‑up service within 12 months of their check increased from 12% to 47% between 2010–11 and 2019–20.
COVID‑19
The report presents data on Indigenous‑specific health checks and follow‑up services for a time period up until the end of June 2021 (i.e. overlapping with the COVID‑19 period). It also includes data on telehealth MBS items that were introduced in 2020 as part of the response to COVID‑19.
See the companion report, Indigenous-specific health checks during the COVID-19 pandemic, for more detailed analysis.
- Cat. no: IHW 209
Findings from this report:
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In 2020–21, 27% of Indigenous Australians had an Indigenous health check – up from 10% in 2010–11
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553,000 Indigenous Australians received at least 1 health check in the 5-year period to 30 June 2021
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47% of Indigenous Australians who had a health check in 2019–20 had an Indigenous-specific follow-up within 12 months
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In 2020–21, 5% of Indigenous-specific health check patients had a health check via phone or video-conference