Australia’s life insurers see firsthand the lived experiences of customers who are severely impacted by mental ill health and are unable to work or participate in the communities in which they live. We fully support a broad, coordinated effort across all areas of the NSW Government, as well as across governments nationally, to better support Australians with mental ill health and to prevent suicide.
As the Government develops the NSW Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy, we believe the Government should prioritise:
- education, training and boosts to the mental health workforce
- mental health research to better understand causes, treatments, and prevention strategies
- accessible, equitable mental health care for all Australians, especially in rural, regional, and remote areas.
The NSW Government should also consider the intersections between different parts of our states and the nation’s safety net for people experience mental ill health and take actions to address the root cause of mental ill-health and avoid cost shifting between public and private systems