Kay Elson (Forde, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is addressed to the Minister for Health and Ageing. Would the minister advise the House on the government’s commitment to improving mental health services?

Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Forde for her question and for her interest in this area. I can inform her and the House that it is estimated that, in any one year, up to one in five Australians can suffer a significant mental health problem but that up to a half of all mental health problems are not effectively treated. We know that mental health problems can be hard to diagnose, difficult to treat and slow to cure, but this is a reason to increase our efforts in mental health care, not to reduce them.

As part of its commitment to the Council of Australian Governments mental health program, the federal government recently announced $1.9 billion in additional mental health spending. Amongst other things, Medicare will be expanded to allow GPs and psychiatrists to refer patients to psychologists. It is estimated that this will mean an additional 400,000 psychologist consultations a year. GP and psychiatric practices will be supported to employ mental health nurses and it is estimated that an additional 36,000 patients a year will be helped through this measure. As well, the government will fund an extra 420 mental health nurse training places and an additional 200 clinical psychology training places, and the government will further expand the Better Outcomes in Mental Health program in regional areas.

More good news from the Howard government: yesterday, thanks to the good work of the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Health and Ageing, who is momentarily absent from this parliament, I can say that an agreement to provide $54 million to the Youth Mental Health Foundation was finalised. Much mental health care in public hospitals or in supported accommodation remains, of course, the responsibility of the states, but I am confident that the federal government doing much more in its area of responsibilities will encourage the states to do what is needed in their area of responsibility.