Speaking at Research Australia’s Health Economics Symposium at the National Press Club on 31 July 2025, Professor Henry Cutler delivered a compelling call to action for a more coordinated and evidence-driven approach to healthcare reform in Australia.

“This symposium is an opportunity to step back, connect, and reimagine our contribution to improving health outcomes and Australia’s productivity,” Professor Cutler said, addressing a diverse audience of policymakers, industry leaders, and academics.

Professor Cutler outlined his priority question for the event: How do we make our healthcare system work better – not just for patients, but for the entire health economy? He emphasised the vital role of health economics and health services research in answering that question, noting that these disciplines shape how effectively the system functions and, ultimately, the health of all Australians.

Professor Cutler also voiced serious concerns about funding for health services research in Australia. “In the last NHMRC Investigator Grant round, the success rate for health services researchers was just 2.5 per cent. By any yardstick, this is a crisis,” he said.

Cutler called for stronger integration of Australia’s world-class expertise in policy design, data analysis, and evaluation, which he said is currently scattered across government departments, universities, and industry. He also highlighted the potential of new integrated data assets, such as the National Health Data Hub and the Person Level Integrated Data Asset, to uncover hidden trends and answer previously unanswerable questions.

“Healthcare is a complex service, delivered in a complex system, by complex people,” he said. To strengthen evidence-based policy, Professor Cutler urged governments to invest in understanding social preferences, improving data quality, and building analytical and project management capabilities.

“Health economists and health services researchers can add more value to our collective goal of improving health outcomes,” he concluded. “Today is about embedding their work into the fabric of healthcare reform and the productivity agenda.”

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