Category: Australian News

Australians with asthma and multiple myeloma will have broader access to life changing medicines as a result of expanded medicines listings on Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) from 1 June 2020.
The listing of Symbicort® (containing budesonide and formoterol) will now be available at PBS prices for adolescent and adult patients with mild asthma.
Symbicort will be available in two strengths of inhaler, Symbicort Turbuhaler® 200/6, and Symbicort Rapihaler® 100/3.
Asthma is a common chronic condition, and can become serious, especially if untreated. Almost 400 Australians die from asthma each year.
This medicine has previously been available for patients with more severe forms of asthma.
This expanded listing is estimated to provide new treatment options for over 170,000 patients with milder forms of asthma each year.
Patients would pay around $137 per year without subsidised access through the PBS. They will now pay as little as $6.60 per script with a concession card.
Patients with more severe forms of asthma will also benefit from the listing of a new pre-filled self-administered autoinjector pen, from 1 June.
The Nucala® pre-filled pen will be an important new treatment option for patients suffering from severe eosinophilic asthma, allowing them to self-administer their treatment at home avoiding the need to travel or attend a clinic to receive their monthly treatment.
Over 1,400 patients per year access Nucala® through the PBS and may benefit from the listing of Nucala® pre-filled pen. Without subsidy they would pay over $20,000 per year for treatment.
The listing of Revlimid® (lenalidomide) on the PBS Highly Specialised Drugs Program will also be expanded, to allow use in combination with Velcade® (bortezomib) and dexamethasone for previously untreated multiple myeloma.
Multiple myeloma is a type of blood cancer that develops from plasma cells in the bone marrow.
It is estimated up to 2,300 patients may benefit from this listing each year, which might otherwise cost more than $64,000 per course of treatment.
Additionally, new PBS listings are being introduced for smaller maximum quantities of medicines for the treatment of short-term acute pain following surgery or injury.
The revised listings form part of a broader suite of measures to support appropriate use of opioids. These include education and awareness campaigns, changes to clinical guidelines and a national real-time prescription monitoring system.
Since 2013, the Australian Government has approved more than 2,350 new or amended listings on the PBS.
This represents an average of around 30 listings or amendments per month – or one each day – at an overall investment by the Government of $11.5 billion.
The Government’s commitment to ensuring that Australians can access affordable medicines, when they need them, remains rock solid.
All new medicines listings on the PBS are about saving and protecting lives.

The National Cabinet met today to further discuss Australia’s current COVID-19 response, easing restrictions in the coming months, helping Australians prepare to go back to work in a COVID-Safe environment and getting the economy moving again.
The Chief Medical Officer, Professor Brendan Murphy, provided an update on the measures underway, the latest data and medical advice in relation to COVID-19.
There have been over 7,100 confirmed cases in Australia and sadly 103 people have died. There are now less than 500 active cases in Australia, and over the past week, daily infection rates have remained low. Testing remains high, with more than 1.37 million tests undertaken in Australia.
We need to continue to have the right controls in place to test more people, trace those who test positive and respond to local outbreaks when they occur. These are precedent conditions to enable Australia to relax baseline restrictions and enable Australians to live and work in a COVID-19 safe economy.
National Cabinet again encouraged Australians to download the COVIDSafe app to ensure that we can protect Australians and continue to ease baseline restrictions.
More than 6.1 million Australians have already downloaded the COVIDSafe app. This is an enormous achievement but more is needed.
National Cabinet will meet again on Friday 12 June 2020.
Review of Restrictions
On 8 May 2020, National Cabinet approved the 3-Step Framework for a COVIDSafe Australia and agreed to a minimum of three weeks between implementation of each step of the framework. Movement into subsequent steps will be informed by monitoring for any evidence of increases in transmission or outbreaks, increased pressure on the health system, testing or personal protective equipment demand, demands on the public health response to cases and community adherence and acceptance of these measures.
The number of new cases has remained low, and we have responded effectively to localised outbreaks. We’ve made economic and social gains – with businesses starting to open back up, people getting back to work, and friends and families getting back together.
The AHPPC has advised that there has been continued progress on meeting the majority of precedent conditions under the Pandemic Health Intelligence Plan to enable restrictions to be removed under the 3 Step COVID-Safe Australia. The precedent conditions include access to PPE, testing rates, use of the COVIDSafe App.
While it is still too early to determine the success of our measures – but the initial signs are very positive.
All states and territories have reduced transmission, enabling Step 1 conditions to be established. Some jurisdictions have been able to move further than Step 1 due to their local conditions. Successfully removing restrictions under Step 1 is estimated to return 250,000 jobs and increase economic activity by $3.1 billion.
Given the success of the health system in reducing transmission, states and territories now have plans in place to move to Step 2 conditions under a COVIDSafe Australia 3 Step Framework in June 2020. This will allow most businesses to reopen with physical distancing, hygiene and COVID Safe work plans. It is estimated that Step 2 will return an additional $3 billion in economic activity and 275,000 jobs to the workforce.
National Cabinet noted further updated AHPPC advice – including updated modelling, the Australian National Disease Surveillance Plan for COVID-19 and advice on use of masks.
National Health Reform Agreement
National Cabinet has finalised the 2020-2025 National Health Reform Agreement.
Under the Agreement the Commonwealth will invest an estimated $131.4 billion in demand driven public hospital funding to improve health outcomes for all Australians and ensure the sustainability of our health system now and into the future.
The new Agreement also includes a commitment by all Australian governments to a shared long-term vision for health reform, at a time when shared investment and coordination in health has never been more important.
Principles for Public Transport operations
National Cabinet agreed that public transport services are the responsibility of the states and territories, and that it was important to continue to work together to ensure services can continue to run as safely as possible for both the workforce and passengers.
To support this effort, National Cabinet endorsed principles approved by the AHPPC which will help manage the health and safety of workers and passengers on public transport networks.
The principles outline the responsibility passengers must take when traveling on public transport including not travelling when feeling unwell, maintaining physical distance from drivers and other passengers, and avoiding handling cash.
Under the principles, public transport users are not required to wear masks but may do so on a voluntary basis.
The principles should be considered alongside Work Health and Safety requirements, public health advice and other advice jurisdictions provide in relation to mass gatherings, including on public transport.
National Cabinet agreed that the principles will be reviewed as governments progress through the three-step plan to take into account any emerging challenges or innovative solutions, or as interactions with international travel start to be considered.
The principles can be found at: https://www.health.gov.au/committees-and-groups/australian-health-protection-principal-committee-ahppc
National Cabinet
National Cabinet has agreed to the formation of the National Federation Reform Council and the cessation of the COAG model.
National Cabinet has worked effectively to respond to COVID-19. The new National Federation Reform Council agreed to by Premiers, Chief Ministers and the Prime Minister, will change the way the Commonwealth and states and territories effectively and productively work together to address new areas of reform.
The National Cabinet will be driven by an initial single agenda – to create jobs. A job making agenda.
By any measure, National Cabinet has proven to be a much more effective body for taking decisions in the national interest than the COAG structure.
At the centre of the National Federation Reform Council will be National Cabinet.
National Cabinet will continue to meet regularly and will be briefed directly by experts such as the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee.
Initial reform areas will be agreed by National Cabinet.
During the COVID-19 period, National Cabinet will continue to meet every two weeks. In the future, these meetings will take place once a month.
The Council on Federal Financial Relations (CFFR), which is essentially a meeting of all Treasurers, will report to National Cabinet. CFFR will take responsibility for all funding agreements including National Partnership Agreements.
Important taskforces will continue in areas that are critical to our National Agenda. The taskforce on women’s safety and domestic violence will continue their critical work, as will the Indigenous affairs taskforce with a particular focus on Closing the Gap.
Once a year, National Cabinet, CFFR and the Australian Local Government Association will meet in person as the National Federation Reform Council with a focus on priority national federation issues such as Closing the Gap and Women’s Safety.
This new model will streamline processes and avoid endless meetings that do not result in action. This is a congestion busting process that will get things done with a single focus on creating jobs.
This is an exciting new agenda for our federation and is about rebuilding confidence to get Australians back into work.
Further details of the National Federation Reform Council and consolidation and reset of the Ministerial Forums and Ministerial Regulatory Councils will be reviewed by National Cabinet.

Public hospitals across the country will have record funding for the next five years after all states and territories signed onto the Morrison Government’s new health reform agreement.
This record funding agreement will deliver more doctors, more nurses and more services across public hospitals in every state and territory.
This commitment ensures the Australian health system remains stable and nationally coordinated, particularly throughout this unprecedented time.
Overall, the Commonwealth will invest an estimated $131.4 billion in demand driven public hospital funding to improve health outcomes for all Australians and ensure the sustainability of our health system now and into the future.
The new 2020‑25 National Health Reform Agreement provides an estimated $31.4 billion in additional funding to public hospitals over five years from 2020–21. This is in addition to the over $8 billion health investment by the Commonwealth during the COVID-19 response.
As part of the new Agreement, the Morrison Government has provided a funding guarantee to all states and territories to ensure no jurisdiction is left worse off as a result of the COVID‑19 pandemic, and guarantees the Commonwealth’s funding contribution for public hospitals over the next five years.
This guarantee is critical to ensuring state and territory governments can continue to deliver safe and effective public hospital services for all Australians, especially when all Australian governments are working to respond to the COVID‑19 pandemic.
Under this Agreement, a small number of very sick children across Australia will receive lifesaving, high cost therapies such as immunotherapy, to reduce and rid cancer from their body, free of charge.
Commonwealth and states have agreed to jointly fund this cancer treatment. Without this support patients could pay around $500,000 per treatment for cancer immunotherapy.
States are also funded to deliver more flexible care, including hospital care in the home, to give patients care where and when they need it.
This will include rehabilitation after a stroke in the home. This provides better long term outcomes for patients. It will help many Australians with approximately 50,000 strokes occurring per year.
This agreement also builds on the collaboration between the Commonwealth and the states in responding to COVID-19.
New funding arrangements under the Agreement mean people with some of the rarest conditions will have better access to new innovative life-saving high-cost therapies in public hospitals around the country.
Importantly, the Agreement strengthens all governments’ commitment to ensuring equitable access to public hospitals for all Australians by removing incentives that can lead to the preferential treatment of private patients.
The new Agreement also includes a commitment by all Australian governments to a shared long-term vision for health reform, at a time when shared investment and coordination in health has never been more important.
The reforms aim to make it easier to provide flexible, high-quality care that meets the needs and preferences of Australians, and reduces pressure on hospitals.
Through this Agreement, we will ensure Australia’s health system continues to be one of the best in the world, delivering the best possible health outcomes for Australians.
State and territory funding breakdown

• The Australian Government funding contribution for public hospital services in New South Wales is estimated to grow substantially to an estimated $40.1 billion over the next five years, delivering an additional $9.3 billion in funding.
• The Australian Government funding contribution for public hospital services in Victoria is estimated to grow substantially to an estimated $32.4 billion over the next five years, delivering an additional $7.3 billion in funding.
• The Australian Government funding contribution for public hospital services in Queensland is estimated to grow substantially to an estimated $30.1 billion under the new agreement, delivering an additional $8.4 billion in funding.
• The Australian Government funding contribution for public hospital services in Western Australia is estimated to grow substantially to an estimated $14.1 billion over the next five years, delivering an additional $3.4 billion in funding.
• The Australian Government funding contribution for public hospital services in South Australia is estimated to grow substantially to an estimated $7.8 billion, delivering an additional $1.3 billion in funding.
• The Australian Government funding contribution for public hospital services in Tasmania is estimated to grow substantially to an estimated $2.4 billion under the new agreement, delivering an additional $400 million in funding.
• The Australian Government funding contribution for public hospital services in the Northern Territory is estimated to grow substantially to an estimated $2.0 billion over five years to 2024-25, delivering an additional $707 million in funding.

The Australian Government funding contribution for public hospital services in the Australian Capital Territory is estimated to grow substantially to $2.5 billion in funding, delivering an additional $598 million in funding.

This week is National Reconciliation Week.
It is bookended by two anniversaries important in our nation’s history and progress.
The anniversary of the referendum on 27 May 1967, when Australians voted overwhelmingly to amend the Constitution to allow the Commonwealth to make laws for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and ensure they were counted in the population.
And the anniversary of the High Court’s Mabo decision delivered on 3 June 1992, which ruled that Aboriginal people held native title in the common law before the colonisation of Australia.
This week also marks the 20th anniversary of the presentation to the Government of the final report of the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation, and the public walks across bridges which attracted hundreds of thousands of people across the land.
National Reconciliation Week is an opportunity for all Australians to reflect on our troubled history and how far we’ve progressed down the path of resolving the differences  between settler communities and First Nations peoples.
There have been signs of progress in the past two decades, but it has been an incremental change going forward and much more still needs to be achieved.
In light of recent events, it is fitting that the theme of the 2020 Reconciliation Week is, “In this Together”.
The pandemic has highlighted the resilience of First Nations communities.
So this week is also an opportunity to consider how to make those communities, and our relationships, more resilient as we work towards the recovery of our nation.
The fulfilment of the hopes embedded in the Uluru Statement from the Heart would go a long way towards Reconciliation.
Labor continues to support the basic principles of the Uluru statement – a Voice to Parliament enshrined in the Constitution, and a Makarrata Commission to examine our history since occupation and supervise a process of agreement-making with Australian governments.
Not until we have reached a true national settlement will we all be able to echo confidently the words of the Gurindji leader Vincent Lingiari in 1975, when Prime Minister Gough Whitlam symbolically poured dirt into his hands:  “We are all mates now.”
We encourage all Australians to use this week to learn more about Reconciliation and the practical steps they can take to realise it in their own way.
Reconciliation is everyone’s business. We are in this together.

The Greens say that all native forest logging operations across Australia now face a cascade of legal challenges, after today’s Federal Court judgement showed that existing logging laws and operations are sending threatened species to the brink of extinction.
Australian Greens forests spokesperson Senator Janet Rice welcomed to this morning’s landmark Federal Court judgement on Friends of Leadbeater’s Possum Inc v VicForests saying:
“This is a hugely significant decision. It shows the provisions of our logging laws under the Regional Forest Agreements (RFAs) are not working to protect threatened species.
“The federal government and state governments have long argued that logging operations were fine and legal, but this case says that VicForests’ logging operations under the Victorian Central Highlands RFA are not working to protect threatened species including Victoria’s animal emblem, the Leadbeater’s possum, and the Greater Glider.
“The judgement says that logging’s exemption from our national environmental laws (the EPBC Act) will end in a swathe of coupes in Victoria, setting a precedent which puts all other native forest logging operations on notice.
“Native forest logging cannot continue if Australia’s threatened species are going to survive.
“This is a major warning to Commonwealth and state governments who are continuing to allow destructive native forest  logging, showing that they face significant legal hurdles to continuing their work.
“It’s time to get out of native forest logging now.”
The Greens have a bill in the federal parliament to scrap the Regional Forest Agreements.
The full judgement of the Federal Court can be found here online.

With JobKeeper set for a $60b underspend, the Greens will introduce legislation to the Senate when Parliament resumes in June to extend JobSeeker and JobKeeper eligibility, as well as pushing for investment in jobs-rich recovery in arts and manufacturing.
Although Labor previously voted against Greens’ amendments to extend JobKeeper eligibility to all casuals and gig workers and to give the coronavirus supplement to Disability Support Pension recipients and carers, the Greens are optimistic that the measures will pass the Senate, given Labor’s recent supportive comments as well as public statements from crossbenchers. Only two government backbenchers would then need to cross the floor for any of the measures to secure a majority in the House. The bill passing the Senate will increase pressure on the government to provide further assistance to those it has left behind. A Royal Commission into the banks was established after a Greens-led push passed the Senate and was due for a vote in the House, with the government ultimately caving in to avoid losing a vote.
The No One Left Behind bill to be introduced in the sittings commencing 10 June will seek:

• the extension of JobKeeper eligibility to casuals employed less than 12 months, workers with intermittent employment histories, gig workers, university staff and temporary visa holders including international students; and
• the payment of the full $550/week coronavirus supplement to DSP and carers payment recipients.

The Senate push will also include a redirection of funds from the government’s unused coronavirus stimulus package towards jobs-rich recovery measures, including:

• a $2.3b fund to rescue the arts and creative sectors;
• prepare for Australia’s recovery from the crisis by investing $12b to establish the Manufacturing Australia Fund to modernise and expand Australia’s manufacturing, creating clean, green jobs of the future.

Greens Leader Adam Bandt said:
“The $60b in already-budgeted funds should be used to help the people the government has left behind and invest in a jobs-rich recovery package. The Greens will use Parliament to help make it happen.
“Further cuts will make it harder to recover. We must invest to recover.
“Over 2 million workers are needlessly hurting and this bill will help them.
“The government budgeted $130 billion to save jobs. This is their chance to extend the JobKeeper payment to all casuals, temporary visa workers and industries left behind like universities.
“The arts, creative and university sectors are being decimated and there are now clearly funds available to help them get back on their feet.
“This underspend could also set up a new body, Manufacturing Australia, to turbo-charge manufacturing in this country, just like the Clean Energy Finance Corporation has done for clean energy. We can grow industries like green steel and provide decent jobs for coal workers as we phase out coal to deal with the climate emergency.”

The Greens have said that the Coalition government can’t be trusted to rebuild our vocational education system or create jobs, ahead of the Prime Minister’s address to the National Press Club today.
Senator Mehreen Faruqi, Australian Greens spokesperson for Education, said:
“Free TAFE and uni for all and new investment to rebuild publicly-delivered training in our TAFEs are the crucial first steps needed for any skills overhaul. That’s the benchmark for the Prime Minister today.
“Scott Morrison has overseen years of cuts and marketisation and now trots out the hollow language of efficiency without a hint of commitment to the public education and training we need to rebuild as a fairer and more equal society after this crisis.
“For Scott Morrison to turn around and criticise the skills system his Government has systematically undermined is hypocrisy of the highest form.
“In real terms, the Liberals have cut more than $2 billion in funding for student places in the last few years, watched training hours collapse, and apprenticeship numbers fall to historic lows.
“At the same time, the federal and state governments have done far too little to protect increasingly insecure jobs in TAFEs.
“I’m deeply concerned this will end up just another windfall for the profit-making private providers at the expense of TAFEs,” she said.
Adam Bandt MP, Leader of the Australian Greens, said:
“The Prime Minister isn’t a job maker, he is a job faker, with no plan to invest to create decent jobs.
“Cutting rights is not a plan to create jobs and nor is skilling people up for jobs that aren’t there.
“We must invest to recover, with nation-building, planet-saving projects and a Jobs and Income Guarantee.
“Depression-era job numbers demand a Depression-era response. That means not shying away from debt, but using it to invest in building a cleaner, fairer Australia. We need a Jobs and Income Guarantee to offer people security and decent work while setting Australia up for the future.
“We desperately need a plan to create decent work while tackling the climate crisis, but the only jobs this government is creating are for gas lobbyists.”

Australian Greens Peace and Disarmament spokesperson Senator Jordon Steele-John has expressed deep concern that the United States Marine Rotational Force will be going ahead in Darwin in early June.
“All military cooperation with the United States in Australia must cease while the threat of COVID-19 remains high to protect people in the the Northern Territory, including First Nations Communities and Australian Forces who would ordinarily be undertaking shared activities with US Troops based in the Top End,” Steele-John said.
“The Northern Territory has worked hard to ensure that COVID-19 is contained, including strict border controls and placing restrictions on movement into remote communities. So far, these measures have been extremely successful at keeping Territorians safe.
“Conversely, the United States has more than 1.2 million active cases of COVID-19 and President Trump’s handling of the crisis has been nothing short of a disaster.
“There have also been serious COVID-19 outbreaks on the USS Kidd, USS Theodore and many others.  This risk is further amplified by a decision by the US military to clamp down on publicising the number of cases there are amongst deployed forces due to security concerns.
“Noting that Darwin has already had returning Australian troops come in with COVID-19 from overseas deployments, I urge you to reconsider the allowing  Marine Rotational Force to go ahead over the next couple of week.
“There is absolutely no reason to put communities or the health system in the Top End at risk.”

The Australian Government is providing more than $20 million additional funding for research to improve mental health care and reduce suicide rates in Australia.
Mental health and suicide prevention remains one of the Government’s highest priorities.
Almost half of Australians will experience a mental illness in their lifetimes and as we battle COVID-19 it’s more important than ever that we prioritise mental health.
Call for Rapid Research on the Mental Health Impacts of COVID-19
The disruption to normal life caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the required restrictions has had profound impacts on the mental health and wellbeing of many Australians.
The Government will therefore be providing $3 million for a new grants round under the $125 million MRFF Million Minds Mission, for rapid research to improve the national mental health system response to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
This funding is for new research that will help better position our mental health system to be more effective in supporting Australians to manage their mental health and wellbeing, during and following the pandemic.
Applications for grants of up to $1 million will open on 1 June, with the research projects expected to deliver results within 12 to 18 months.
These grants may support work consolidating data systems, and help design and deliver new treatments, services, and policies. The research is expected to also be relevant in future times of hardship, such as natural disasters.
These research projects and the grant opportunity complement the Government’s broader efforts around mental health and suicide prevention, including the recently announced National Mental Health and Wellbeing Pandemic Response Plan.
Since 30th January, the Government has provided an additional approximately $500 million for mental health services and support, including $64 million for suicide prevention, $74 million for preventative mental health services, $48 million to support the pandemic response plan.
It also includes a significant proportion of the $669 million telehealth package to support MBS-subsidised treatments provided by GPs, psychologists, psychiatrists and other mental health professionals.
$10.3 Million for Suicide Prevention Research
The Government is also investing $10.3 million to support three research projects to help reduce the rate of suicide in Australia.
In 2018, suicide was responsible for 12.1 deaths per 100,000 people in Australia, with 3,048 suicides recorded in that year.
Every suicide is a tragedy and devastates families, friends and loved ones.
Through the Million Minds Mental Health Research Mission, the Government is investing in projects to better understand suicide and provide the right services, in the right place, at the right time.
The three successful projects to receive grants through the Mission are:

• University of Melbourne (Professor Jane Pirkis): will receive $5.6 million to research the prevention of suicide in boys and men. Men account for 75 per cent of all suicides. This research will trial five interventions designed to encourage men to seek help. It will also trial two interventions designed to ensure that if men and boys seek help from telephone crisis support workers and psychologists, these providers can offer services that meet their needs.
• University of New South Wales (Scientia Professor Helen Christensen AO): will receive $3.7 million for the Under the Radar Project. As many as 60 per cent of those who die by suicide are not in care. Many will only use the internet. This project will investigate the use of the internet as the first point of contact and develop a collaborative, consumer-led, comprehensive care model using digital, peer support and face-to-face services.
• Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (Associate Professor Rebecca Giallo): will receive $951,000 to research suicide prevention among men in early fatherhood. One of the highest rates of suicide among men coincides with becoming fathers and raising young children. This project will develop effective interventions to improve men’s mental health during early fatherhood.

$6.75 Million to Improve Treatment Using Pharmacogenomics
In addition, the Government is investing $6.725 million to support research on the use of pharmacogenomics in providing more effective treatment options for Australians requiring medication for mental health challenges.
Pharmacogenomics looks at how genetics can affect a person’s response to certain drugs.
While psychological strategies are usually the first-line in treatment of mental illness, medications can be an important part of a treatment plan, with almost 10 per cent of Australians now regularly taking antidepressants.
However, a significant number of people do not respond positively to their first prescription, causing delays in improvements to their symptoms and sometimes exacerbating anxiety.
Studies suggest that antidepressant treatment response is significantly influenced by each person’s specific genetic profile, and delays in improvement of symptoms can potentially be reduced through predictive pharmacogenomics testing.
This $6.75 million in funding, under the Medical Research Future Fund’s Emerging Priorities and Consumer Driven Research initiative, will allow four leading researchers to investigate how pharmacogenomics can be used to tailor mental health prescriptions to the needs of each individual and improve health outcomes.
The successful recipients are:

• Professor Jon Emery (University of Melbourne) who will receive $1.39 million to investigate the effects of using pharmacogenomics to prescribe antidepressants on depression outcomes in patients with major depressive disorder in primary care.
• Professor Sarah Medland (The Council of the Queensland Institute of Medical Research) who will receive $1.37 million to examine how we can improve the performance of pharmacogenomics in Australia.
• Associate Professor Janice Fullerton (Neuroscience Research Australia) who will receive $1 million to investigate the pharmacogenomic signatures of bipolar disorder for improving treatment outcomes.
• Doctor Kathy Wu (St Vincent’s Hospital Sydney) who will receive $2.95 million to conduct trial of genotype-guided versus standard psychotropic therapy in moderately-to-severely depressed patients.

These new research grants will help more effectively treat those who might need medication with options that are best suited to them, and will ensure that we continue to provide the best possible mental health care for all Australians, now and in the future.
Through record investments in mental health services and support, with expenditure estimated to be $5.2 billion this year alone, the Australian Government continues to demonstrate its firm commitment to the mental health and wellbeing of all Australians
Anyone experiencing distress can seek immediate advice and support through Beyond Blue (1300 224 636), Lifeline (13 11 14), Kids Helpline (1800 55 1800), or the Government’s digital mental health gateway, Head to Health (www.headtohealth.gov.au).
20-05-25 Hunt – Media Release – Additional $20 million for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Research

The Morrison Government has committed $10.8 million over three years for Reconciliation Australia to continue their valuable work in shaping Australia’s journey towards reconciliation.
Minister for Indigenous Australians, the Hon Ken Wyatt AM, MP, said the funding will enable Reconciliation Australia to continue to help all Australians turn good intentions into meaningful action and deliver positive outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
“For two decades, Reconciliation Australia has worked to improve relationships between Indigenous and other Australians, by building respect, trust and opportunities among individuals, organisations, schools and communities,” Minister Wyatt said.
“Through its Australian Reconciliation Barometer and Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) program, Reconciliation Australia has provided significant momentum to empower people to build a better future for all of us.”
“Tens of thousands of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are benefiting from job creation, education opportunities and business transactions created through RAP actions.”
“Reconciliation Australia is also helping to improve Australians’ attitudes and perceptions of Indigenous peoples and cultures by supporting national campaigns that positively impact reconciliation, most notably the annual National Reconciliation Week which starts on 27 May.”
“The Morrison Government is proud to continue its support of Reconciliation Australia so that all Australians are supported in our collective journey towards a more reconciled country.”
Chief Executive Officer of Reconciliation Australia, Karen Mundine, said the funding will support the advancement of reconciliation nationally.
“Since we began Reconciliation Australia 20 years ago, we have assisted Australians to imagine a better country, a future based on mutual respect and understanding, and a shared appreciation of Australia’s history,” Ms Mundine said.
“Australians are informing themselves and, in turn, informing their own families and friends about the truth of our history and the critical importance of reconciliation.”
“These conversations will ultimately make us a better country that truly values Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and cultures as fundamental to who we are as Australians.”