Abstract

This article is concerned with the key economic characteristics of Australia's mental health system. First, some brief conceptual and empirical descriptions are provided of Australia's mental health services, both as a total system, and of its two principal components, viz. public psychiatric institutions and private psychiatry services. Expenditures on public psychiatric hospitals clearly demonstrate the effect of deinstitutionalisation. Data from 1984 on private practice psychiatry indicate that per capita utilisation rates peaked in 1996 and have since fallen. Generally, since 1984 gross fees have not risen. However, for both utilisation and fees, there is evidence (of a statistical kind) that there are significant differences between the states of Australia, in these two variables (utilisation and fees). Emphasis is also placed on the economic incentives that arise from health insurance and the heterogeneous nature of mental illness. The effects of these incentives are regarded as by-products of the health insurance mechanism; and another effect, "unmet need" and "met non-need", is a somewhat unique problem of an informational kind. Discussion of many of these issues concludes on a somewhat negative note, e.g. that no empirical results are available to quantify the particular effect that is discussed. This is a manifestation of the lacunae of economic studies of the mental health sector.

Highlights

  • Mental illnesses and conditions are amongst the most important chronic diseases in populations internationally [1], and in Australia [2,3,4]

  • The Section presents some data on how the size of public psychiatric institutions has changed through time, as well as providing an overview of the key economic features of private

  • This ABS study is based on a representative sample survey of Australian adults, and generated data, on the prevalence of mental illness, and the use of mental health services by people with mental illness, and people without mental illness

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Summary

Introduction

Mental illnesses and conditions are amongst the most important chronic diseases in populations internationally [1], and in Australia [2,3,4]. The changes introduced at that time restricted consumers to 50 such consultations per year, There are some epidemiological data (from the 1997 national survey, Mental Health and Wellbeing...[31]) which indicate that there is some cause for concern as to the operational efficacy of the nation's mental health system This ABS study is based on a representative sample survey of Australian adults, and generated data, on the prevalence of mental illness, and the use of mental health services by people with mental illness, and people without mental illness. The utilisation rates, just reported, for private psychiatry services across the regions of Australia during the Medicare period need to be considered in the light of epidemiological information.

Conclusion
Abel-Smith B
17. Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing
28. Richardson J
33. Whiteford H
Findings
37. Australian Bureau of Statistics
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