Childhood vaccination rates have fallen over the past five years while more Australians are suffering from chronic disease, according to a major report into the health of the nation.
More than 60 per cent of people are living with at least one chronic condition, Australia's Health 2026 report shows, placing a growing burden on the health care system.
According to most recent data, published in 2022, 38 per cent of Australians were living with two or more chronic conditions, which include a wide range of medical issues such as mental illness, cancer, cardiovascular disease and musculoskeletal conditions.
Doctors say treating patients is becoming increasingly complicated as chronic conditions become more common.
Of concern, the report also found the number of children getting immunised had fallen in recent years, dropping from 95 per cent of one-year-olds in 2020 to 92 per cent in 2025.
Vaccination rates also fell for two-year-olds and five-year-olds.
"While Australia has long maintained high childhood immunisation rates, these recent declines are concerning, particularly given rising notifications rates for measles, diphtheria and whooping cough," Australian Institute of Health and Welfare spokeswoman Louise Gates said in a statement.
Worryingly, the report found around one third of the nation's disease burden could be reduced through lifestyle choices.
In 2022/24, 67 per cent of adults were overweight or obese and 27 per cent of children and adolescents.
But in some promising news, cancer survival rates have shot up dramatically, with 72 per cent of people diagnosed between 2017 and 2021 surviving at least five years, compared to just 50 per cent three decades earlier.
Meanwhile, dementia has overtaken coronary heart disease to become the leading cause of death in Australia.
The number of deaths from dementia rose 39 per cent between 2015 and 2024, driven largely by the ageing population.
