Centre for Disease Control needs a major funding boost in Federal Budget, doctors warn

8 May 2024

The Royal Australasian College of Physicians is calling for a major funding boost into the new Australian Centre for Disease Control in next week’s Federal Budget, with every dollar invested in prevention having the potential to deliver $14.30 in benefits for the health budget [1].

The Australian CDC was an election promise from the Government in response to the COVID pandemic and growing rates of chronic disease, and it began operating earlier this year. 

But RACP President-elect Professor Jennifer Martin warned that without adequate funding, the Australian CDC would not be effective in reducing the burden of preventable diseases on communities and the economy. 

“We had long advocated for an Australian Centre for Disease Control but what we don’t want to see is for it to become ineffective through under-funding and limited scope,” Professor Martin said. 

“We also need to get the focus right. In Australia, 64 per cent of the total disease burden is caused by a few often preventable chronic conditions – cancer, mental health conditions, substance use disorders, musculoskeletal conditions, cardiovascular diseases and neurological conditions. 

“People with these conditions had higher rates of severe disease during the COVID pandemic because the communicable and non-communicable diseases are intertwined. That’s one of the reasons we need to tackle both. 

“Communicable diseases and the risk of another pandemic have understandably been in the spotlight recently and still require attention, but it is non-communicable chronic diseases that pose our nation’s biggest health challenges.

“Non-communicable conditions are commonly caused or prevented by lifestyle factors like smoking, alcohol consumption, obesity and physical activity, so there is huge scope for more investment in prevention and better outcomes for patients and the health system.

“That is what we are hoping to see through the Australian CDC, if well-funded in this budget and beyond.”

The College is also calling for the Government to fund the Australian CDC to create an open data framework, to address problems with accessing population-level health data across jurisdictions and organisations. 

Professor Martin said Australia did not invest as much in health prevention as our global counterparts, and the creation of the Australian CDC was an opportunity to rectify that. 

“We commend the Government for fulfilling an important election commitment by creating the Australian CDC, but the critical work is still to come, and we are looking to the May budget for the Government to demonstrate that.

“Investing in health prevention now means saving on healthcare costs for decades to come, so as well as having positive outcomes for people and communities, fully funding the Australian CDC is a smart move for future budgets.” 

More information can be found in the RACP’s 2024 Pre-Budget Submission.

[1] Our Future, Our World - CSIRO

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