Palliative care services in Australia

Public and private hospitals both receive funding from the Australian Government, state and territory governments, private health insurance funds and out-of-pocket payments to cover the costs for hospital admitted patient episodes. However, funds vary across the sectors, reflecting the types of patients they treat, the services they provide, and the administrative arrangements (AIHW 2021).

In 2022–23 (Figure 4): 

• In public hospitals, the proportion of public patient funding for palliative care-related hospitalisations (80%) was lower compared to all hospitalisations (86%). In contrast, private health insurance accounted for higher funding for palliative care-related hospitalisations (17%) compared to all hospitalisations (11%).
• In private hospitals, private health insurance was the principal funding source for 76% of palliative care-related hospitalisations, lower than all hospitalisations (81%). Meanwhile, the proportion of public patient funding for palliative care-related hospitalisations (16%) was higher than for all hospitalisations (6.1%).

Figure 4: Principal funding source for palliative care-related hospitalisations, by sector, 2022–23

Reference

AIHW (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare) (2021) Health expenditure Australia 2019–20, AIHW, Australian Government, accessed 10 July 2024.