The Independent Hospital Pricing Authority and mental health services: it is not a case of “one size fits all”

Applying a generic form of activity-based funding to mental health risks perpetuating an inappropriate hospital-centric model of psychiatric care

The upcoming implementation of activity-based funding (ABF) should drive unprecedented levels of transparency and has the potential to deliver vital funding increases to mental health services. However, current plans to apply a generic form of ABF based on diagnosis-related groups (DRGs) to mental health risk a continuation of Australia’s inappropriate hospital-centric model of psychiatric care. There is much work to do to ensure that ABF is implemented in an evidence-based manner to support patients with mental illnesses, who often require long-term community care and support.