Working towards long‑term reform
The Government is committing $2.2 billion over five years to expand and reform the mental health care system, including:
- $1.5 billion in new initiatives in the 2011‑12 Budget;
- $181 million to continue investments in the 2010‑11 Budget as part of health reform; and
- $443 million to continue funding announced as part of the Government's 2010 election commitment to tackle suicide.
National mental health reform
The Government is investing $2.2 billion over five years in its National Mental Health Reform package to deliver on its commitment to make mental health a national priority, to expand services in effective programs and to create a more targeted and better integrated mental health care system.
This package includes $1.5 billion over five years in new initiatives in the 2011‑12 Budget. These measures build on $624 million in investments recently made by the Government, including funding for suicide prevention, expanding services such as headspace for young people, and more mental health nurses.
This package represents a significant increase in funding for mental health services and takes a first step toward long‑term reform.
A Ten Year Roadmap for Mental Health Reform
The Government will provide the national leadership to deliver a mental health system that gives Australians with mental illness timely access to support, and the best chance to recover, stabilise and stay well in the community.
The initiatives in this Budget will carry us a significant way towards this goal, but further work will be needed in the future.
The Government's vision for change will be developed in a Ten Year Roadmap for Mental Health Reform, which will commit the Government to ongoing action and set out what Australia's mental health system should look like in ten years.
The Government will engage with expert stakeholders and States and Territories to inform development of the full Roadmap, which will be finalised later in 2011.
Australian Government funding for mental health services
