Coronavirus health funding and costs revealed

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has revealed for the first time just how much authorities think coronavirus will cost the health system, and how the states, territories and Federal Government will pay for it.

THE health hit from the coronavirus could top $1 billion with the Federal Government announcing an “unprecedented” joint funding arrangement with the states to battle the virus.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the government would immediately make $100 million available for states and territories to tap into under a 50-50 funding arrangement.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has revealed the cost to Australia’s health and hospital system from coronavirus could top $1 billion. AAP Image/Lukas Coch

He said the total cost to the health system could top $1 billion of which the Commonwealth Government would pay $500 million.

“I hope it’s not that much, it could be more but we at least have to enter into these arrangements having some sense of the scale of what we’re dealing with here,” he said.

“I know that’s a significant amount, but … we have to be prepared. We have got ahead, we have got to stay ahead.”

The deal will operate outside all other hospital funding arrangements to deal directly with costs associated with coronavirus cases.

Health Minister Greg Hunt said the “unprecedented arrangements” would be available for all coronavirus care since January 21.

“It is not just the fact that it is 50-50 funding for public health and hospital,” he said.

“We are now reaching outside of hospital for all of the coronavirus processes and we do this knowing that what we have done together since 21 January includes the successful containment of all of those cases that came from China.

He said the estimate of the $1 billion cost for the health system did not include costs the Federal Government was 100 per cent responsible for such as evacuations, border protection, Medicare costs and additional pathology services.