Tasmania’s health system is set to receive close to $10 million a day, as part of a record $14.5 billion funding package in the upcoming 2025–26 state budget, Pulse can reveal.
The four-year investment is $1.6 billion more than last year’s allocation, with health now making up around 34% of the state’s total operating budget.
Health Minister Jacquie Petrusma released the funding details ahead of the full budget announcement later this week.
“This means that each and every day, we are investing a record nearly $10 million into our health system,” Petrusma said, up from about $8.62 million per day in the last budget.
The package includes $880 million set aside to meet growing demand for health services over the next four years.
“This increase is in addition to our significant investments to attract and retain staff, continue our primary care initiatives, deliver more oral health appointments and enhance outpatient access,” Petrusma told Pulse.
More than $70 million will go towards a new four-year elective surgery plan covering 2025 to 2029. Tasmania currently has the highest rate of elective surgery admissions per capita in Australia.
“The Tasmanian health system has been delivering record volumes of elective surgeries and endoscopies,” Petrusma said.
“In the last financial year alone, our hospitals carried out more than 22,000 elective surgeries, on top of the emergency surgeries and procedures required.”
The budget also includes $663.5 million over four years for hospital upgrades and new health infrastructure.
That funding covers ongoing redevelopment of the state’s four major hospitals and the construction of three dedicated mental health precincts.
