In April 2016, Australia’s Council of Australian Governments (COAG) agreed to establish bilateral agreements to provide flexibility for each jurisdiction (state and territory) to work with the Commonwealth Government to determine the best model of care for Australians with chronic and complex diseases.
Pooled funding across state and territory jurisdictions has the potential to progress universal health coverage and minimise fragmentation in risk-sharing mechanisms. However, pooled population-based health funding at scale would be new, challenging and potentially confronting to Australian health and hospital providers, traditionally funded individually for deliverables based on activity.