AMA submission on the Draft National Preventive Health Strategy 2021-2030
The AMA welcomes the draft Strategy as a leading example of collaborative, evidence-based policy work and is pleased to have been involved in genuine engagement with the Government during the Strategy’s development.
The AMA supports the Strategy’s aim to allocate 5% of health funding to prevention by 2030, and calls on the Government to implement a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages and a volumetric tax on alcohol to source revenue for the increased funding. The AMA’s submission outlines several improvements needed in the Strategy, including carrying through the recognition of underlying health determinants into practical policy suggestions; acknowledging climate change mitigation as a key preventive health opportunity; making sure all targets are measurable and time-bound; and including more detail on implementation plans and accountability for the Strategy's delivery.
