Covid care taskforce sees its funding cut

Australia’s peak evidence advisory group on Covid-19 treatments has had its funding discontinued.

Health Minister Mark Butler. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Australia’s peak evidence advisory group on Covid-19 treatments has had its funding discontinued, sparking warnings there will be “critical gaps” in doctors’ understanding of the ­efficacy of continually emerging therapies.

The National Clinical Evidence Taskforce, a union of 35 member organisations that ­includes medical colleges, peak societies and consumer groups, was formed at the beginning of Covid-19 and has been hailed as “one of the great Australian successes of this pandemic”.

The taskforce was charged with identifying, evaluating and synthesising evidence on Covid-19 as the basis to form recommendations for care. Cinical experts have met twice a week for almost three years alongside 200 volunteer clinicians. Their guidance is heavily relied upon by doctors in general practice, hospitals and specialties.

The taskforce has a contract to develop clinical guidelines for Covid-19 with the commonwealth until December 31. Its major funding comes from the Health Department’s budget. The contract will not be continued beyond its expiry.

Taskforce director Tari Turner said there was enormous disappointment across the medical community and concern that clinicians would no longer have ­access to evidence-based advice as Covid-19 treatments evolved.

“We are disappointed,” ­Associate Professor Turner said. “The taskforce and our 35 member organisations ­believe that Australian clinicians continue to need up-to-date, evidence-based guidance. Our role is to help clinicians, and we think that help is still needed as cases and hospitalisations continue, new ­research is published and new variants emerge. We are also very aware that there is a lot still to be learnt about caring for people after Covid and with long Covid, and clinicians will continue to need trustworthy guidance in those areas too.”

Former deputy chief medical officer and infectious diseases physician Nick Coatsworth called on the federal government to reverse its decision. “While it is appropriate that Covid-specific funding be ceased, federal Health Minister Mark Butler should strongly consider ongoing funding of the taskforce to continue its critical work for Australia’s clinicians and ­patients beyond Covid-19,” Dr Coatsworth said. “The evidence taskforce model for real-time clinical recommendations is unique internationally and ceasing its funding would leave a critical gap.”

The taskforce’s national steering committee chair Caroline Homer echoed the call. “We know there are still many trials going on around the world that will have an impact on how clinicians and GPs treat Covid,” she said. “How are clinicians going to work out what to do?”

GP Mark Morgan, the co-chair of the taskforce’s primary and chronic care panel, said the Health Department had indic­ated the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee and the Therapeutic Goods Administration could take over the job of analysing new medicines, but the taskforce’s work went beyond that and was done speedily.