The ACT’s mental health system has been labelled as fragmented and expensive. Photo: SolStock.
A new report on barriers to mental health care access has labelled the ACT’s system as “frustrating, fragmented and expensive”.
The ACT Mental Health Consumer Network compiled the report over two years, based on user experiences.
Network policy coordinator Dr Dia Andrews said Canberrans deserved an accessible mental health system that lifted people up rather than “one that leaves us worse off”.
“Too many people are being excluded and harmed by rising costs, long wait times, and ineffective care. We need to do better, and we hope that this report can be a catalyst for change,” she said.
Between 2022 and 2024, the Network researched what barriers were affecting people needing mental health support, what the consequences were for those people and what they wanted to see change.
Accessibility and cost were two major issues identified as keeping people from getting the help they needed, while economic issues were identified as some of the leading causes of mental stress.
“If our socio-economic system creates conditions wherein people are unable to meet their basic needs, then the deprivations that these conditions cause will continue to produce an overflow of malaise and maladies that the system will invariably struggle to meet,” the report said.
It made several recommendations for policymakers to improve the mental health system. Two key changes the organisation would like to see are coverage for psycho-social disabilities under the National Disability and Insurance Scheme and the extension of subsidised mental health care to 20 sessions per year.
“At the heart of this report is the desire for the ACT to have a system that supports and facilitates consumers to access services, rather than one that discourages and disincentivises engagement,” it said.
According to Dr Andrews, the research showed those most affected were people struggling economically.
She said upfront costs caused vulnerable people to fall between the cracks.
“The study found that consumers are being exhausted, financially and emotionally, by a system which is prohibitively expensive, hard to navigate and that often fails to provide effective and compassionate care,” Dr Andrews said.
Despite its criticism of the health system, Dr Andrews said the report was being well received.
“So far, we’ve had a positive reception. They’ve been acknowledging that yes, there are problems and we’ve already had a couple of invitations to work more closely on some of the key issues raised in the report in the months ahead, and we’re really excited to take up that opportunity,” she said.
On a territory level, the Network wants the government to improve community spaces and expand non-traditional services.
But Dr Andrews warned that when it comes to affordability, it can’t be just a territory-led goal. Another key recommendation in the report was for joint Commonwealth and ACT funding for services and a joint development of proactive strategies for mental health.
The report comes on the heels of $9.4 million announced in the ACT’s 2025/26 budget for youth mental health, which the government said would provide mental health care that was accessible, timely and effective, as well as reducing pressure on the hospital system.
Dr Andrews said youth funding was a big step towards addressing problems in the system, but warned more was needed to stop people from falling through the cracks.
“The people who often have the greatest need to be able to access these services are also the people who have the fewest resources,” she said.
“They tend to be the people who are the most excluded and have the least access … on the one hand, additional investment in youth mental health [is] fantastic, can’t be happier for that.
“On the other side, it doesn’t necessarily change that we do still have these more structural problems.”
