FOR PRESS: PM. No. 57/ 1972
ASSISTANCE FOR NEW FIELDS OF MEDICAL RESEARCH
Statement by the Prime minister, the Rt Hon. William
McMahon, M. P.
The Government has approved substantially increased grants
for medical research. This includes special Provision for research
into diseases and conditions responsible for the death and chronic
illness of many Australians.
The total grants approved of $ 13.5 million over the next
three years represent a $ 6.5 million increase over the amount
granted to the National Health and Medical Research Council for
medical research in the last triennium.
The major innovation in this substantial expansion of the
Commonwealth's support for medical research is in the first of the
three major categories of research provided for.
Within this category of special needs which are not
currently supported, a total of $ 2.67 million is to be made
available to initiate research under the following headings:-
Psychiatric illness, which has become a major medical
problem in our community.
Cardia-vascular disease, the largest single health problem
confronting Australians.
Viral and renal diseases
Infectious hepatitis
Arthritis, which is a major cause of chronic illness
Asthma, bronchitis and hay fever, the most prevalent
respiratory conditions
Accidents, including traffic, domestic, occupational and
recreational accidents.
Addiction to drugs and alcohol. / 2
a 2.
T7he second category relates -to support for certain medical
research institutes i--n Australia which have developed specialised,
in-depth programmes of notable achievement.
Thle Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of 1fAedica1 Research and
the Howard Florey Institute of Expkerimcntal Physiology and
Medicine have established outstanding world-wide reputations,
and contributed significantly to improve our knowledge in thei r
fields and we want to ensure that support for them is continued.
Finally, we have agreed. to continue support for traditional
areas of medical research through scholarships, overseas fellowships,
and equipment grants as well as the maintenance of current
research activities in universities, hospitals, institutes,
government departments, and by individual doctors and dentists.
In these last two cateqori the increase in assistance is
more than fifty per cent compared with the previous triennium.
The Government is confident that these grants will provide a real
stimulus for medical research.
It is another in a series of significant Government
initiatives over a wide range of public health problems.
The Commonwealth has already taken warning action related
to the hazards to health of smoking in new requirements for
television advertising. We have also recently announced
substantially increased grants for heakt and cancer research.
CANBERRA, June, 1972.