The Wire

The economic and human cost of chronic disease is staggering. Chronic illness causes healthcare costs to rise and indirectly affects costs in other parts of the economy. With state and federal governments currently facing a revenue crisis, there is a general consensus that more funding is needed to deal with an ageing population and the increased health costs associated with that. In Melbourne today, leading economic and social policy experts gathered to look at what strategies are needed for us to tackle alarming chronic disease levels, agreeing that prevention will have the highest benefits for the Australian economy. But what are we doing to prevent chronic disease and the impact it has on our economy?