The new normal: Nearly 40 per cent of Australians living with multiple chronic conditions

The new normal: Nearly 40 per cent of Australians living with multiple chronic conditions

Multimorbidity is complex, costly and disabling. It worsens quality of life, increases the burden on the health system and, for many Australians, limits their ability to work, study or participate fully in life. According to the AIHW’s analysis of the 2022 National Health Survey, 9.7 million people — or 38 per cent of the population — were living with multimorbidity. This included 79 per cent of people aged 85 and over.

The report reveals striking disparities. People in regional and remote areas are more affected than those in major cities. And those living in the most disadvantaged socioeconomic areas are more likely to have multiple chronic conditions compared to their wealthier counterparts (43 per cent versus 32 per cent).

The conditions themselves differ by age and sex. Among younger people, combinations like ADHD and autism feature prominently, while older Australians more commonly live with combinations such as osteoarthritis, back problems and hearing loss. Depression and anxiety — the most common pair of co-occurring conditions — affect an estimated 2.4 million people.

The AIHW report paints a sobering picture of how risk factors such as poor diet, smoking and inactivity drive multimorbidity. Among adults with four or more risk factors, 59 per cent were living with multiple conditions, compared to 29 per cent of those with none. Perhaps most strikingly, 60 per cent of adults who reported eating no daily serves of fruit or vegetables were living with multimorbidity.

Each of these risk factors — including smoking, alcohol use, high blood pressure, obesity and physical inactivity — was individually associated with a higher prevalence of multimorbidity. These associations were statistically significant even after adjusting for age, underlining the importance of addressing preventable risk factors across the lifespan.

People with multimorbidity require more complex and continuous care. They tend to have longer and more frequent GP visits, take more medications, and are more likely to be hospitalised. In 2022–23, 16 per cent of Australians — or 4.1 million people — accessed multidisciplinary care through a GP chronic disease management plan.

The burden also extends beyond health care. Adults with multimorbidity are less likely to be working or seeking work than their peers without chronic conditions (77 per cent versus 87 per cent). Among women, 28 per cent with multimorbidity rated their health as “fair or poor,” compared with just 3.2 per cent of those without any long-term conditions.

Real stories from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health illustrate this impact vividly: women describe being forced to retire early, losing independence, experiencing disabling fatigue and pain, and feeling unable to enjoy everyday life.

Importantly, multimorbidity is not inevitable. Many of the chronic conditions that commonly co-occur — such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, back problems and mental health disorders — share modifiable risk factors. But without coordinated, preventative action, multimorbidity will continue to rise.

The challenge now is to reshape Australia’s health system around the needs of people with chronic and complex conditions. That means investing in prevention, enabling data-driven coordinated care, and empowering individuals to manage their health. It also means recognising multimorbidity as a core measure of the nation’s wellbeing — not just an issue for hospitals, but for workplaces, communities, and governments.