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March 27th, 2013 
SPENDING on mental health services has ballooned by almost half a billion dollars to about $309 for every Australian, according to the latest statistics.
The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) says figures for 2010/11 show a rise in spending of $450 million from the previous financial year, to $6.9 billion.
Of that more than $4.2 billion was spent on state and territory services, with $1.8 billion focused on public hospitals.
“This (total spending) equates to about $309 spent per Australian on mental health-related services in 2010/11, an increase from $248 per Australian in 2006/07,” AIHW spokeswoman Pamela Kinnear said.
The AIHW said the federal government’s spending on mental health services was also on the rise, with $852 million paid in Medicare benefits.
“Almost nine per cent of all prescription subsidies in 2010/11 were mental health-related, totalling $834 million, or $38 per Australian,” Dr Kinnear said.
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