Chronic and mental health conditions are increasingly affecting Australians’ health, as per a recent government report. The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare’s biennial report for 2026 revealed that 61% of Australians, totaling 15.4 million individuals, were living with at least one chronic health issue in 2022, with 38% managing two or more conditions. In 2024, Australians lost around 4.9 million healthy years due to chronic illnesses, constituting 84% of the national disease burden.
The report highlighted that the top five causes of disease burden in 2024 were chronic conditions, with dementia emerging as Australia’s primary cause of death for the first time. Dementia accounted for 9.4% of all national deaths in 2024, surpassing heart disease at 8.7%, according to data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Over the period of 2015 to 2024, dementia-related deaths surged by 39%, while heart disease fatalities decreased by 18%, attributed to Australia’s aging population by Zoran Bolevich, the CEO of AIHW.
In 2022, 22% of Australians aged 16-85 reported experiencing mental health issues in the past year. Notably, the proportion of Australians aged 16-24 reporting mental health conditions rose from 26% in 2007 to 39% in 2022. Despite the increasing prevalence of chronic and mental health challenges, health outcomes in Australia are on an upward trend. Life expectancy at birth reached 85.1 years for females and 81.1 years for males in 2022-24, with a notable improvement in the five-year relative survival rate for cancer patients, rising from 50% in 1987-1991 to 72% in 2017-2021.
