The Preventative Health Taskforce

In September 2009, the Rudd Government announced the long-awaited report from the National Preventative Health Taskforce - Australia: the healthiest country by 2020. AMA broadly supports the initiatives outlined in the report.

The Taskforce report outlines key actions in curbing the three big ‘lifestyle risk factors’ associated with chronic disease - obesity, tobacco use and alcohol abuse. The Taskforce also aims to contribute to the Close the Gap target, reducing the 17-year life expectancy gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people.

In response to the report, AMA President Dr Andrew Pesce said: “Many of the measures proposed by the Taskforce reflect AMA policy on obesity, smoking, alcohol abuse, and Indigenous health, and will deliver health benefits to the community.

“The AMA advocates a comprehensive package of preventive measures to be coordinated by doctors, and general practitioners in particular."

The National Preventative Health Taskforce recommends a national strategic approach to prevention, with seven strategic directions:

Shared responsibility — developing strategic partnerships
Acting early and throughout life
Engaging communities
Influencing markets and developing coherent policies
Reducing inequality
Closing the gap for Indigenous Australians, and
Changing the primary healthcare focus towards prevention.

Dr Pesce said that doctors have been actively involved in providing preventive healthcare and advice for smoking, alcohol abuse and excess weight for a long time, and will continue to do so, but they will need greater support in providing prevention plans for patients to meet the targets set by the Taskforce.

The Taskforce notes that prevention works, pointing to the decreases in death and morbidity from efforts to reduce smoking, improve immunisation rates and improve cardiovascular health.

The Taskforce has made a number of key recommendations, which have received coverage in the mainstream media throughout September. Some of the more contentious recommendations include:

Clear and simple food labelling
Phase out advertising of junk food before 9pm
The use of taxes and subsidies to change the relative costs of healthy and unhealthy food
An increase in the price of tobacco to at least $20 a pack
Plain packaging of tobacco products
A restriction on the number and type of outlets from which tobacco can be sold
Phase out alcohol advertising to under-25s
The introduction of a floor price for alcohol

The report recommends that primary healthcare take a greater role in health promotion. The Taskforce notes a number of limiting factors in general practitioners’ ability to integrate health promotion effectively in their practices.

Dr Pesce said, “We need funding models that will allow GPs to spend time with their patients to make sure that they can incorporate more preventive health strategies into the health care plans for these people."

See the full report here. (PDF 2.1mb)

See the overview here. (PDF 835kb)

The targets:

halt and reverse the rise in overweight and obesity
reduce smoking rates to 10 per cent
reduce short term risky drinking to 14 per cent and long term risky drinking to 7 per cent
contribute to closing the life expectancy gap for indigenous Australians

AMA supports Taskforce recommendations on:

simple and informative nutritional labeling on food products;
restricting broadcast advertising of junk food to children;
banning all remaining forms of tobacco advertising and promotion;
mandating plain packaging of tobacco;
increasing taxation on tobacco; and
restricting the promotion of alcohol products to young people, including sponsorship of sport and cultural events.