Funding

The Morrison Government continues to support the mental health and wellbeing of new and expectant parents with new funding to expand the National Perinatal Mental Health Helpline.

Our Government is providing additional funding of $7.8 million over four years from 2021-22 to 2024-25 to Perinatal Anxiety & Depression Australia (PANDA), which operates the Helpline.

The expansion, funded in the 2021-22 Budget, builds on existing funding to PANDA under the Morrison Government’s Perinatal Mental Health and Wellbeing Program.

The National Perinatal Mental Health Helpline is Australia’s only free national helpline service specifically for women, men, and their families affected by or at risk of perinatal mental illness.

The additional funding announced will enable PANDA to build capacity on the Helpline, which has been in increasing demand during the pandemic, and enable it to continue to provide this vital service.

Perinatal depression and anxiety can affect around 100,000 Australian parents every year.

The Helpline can be accessed at 1300 726 306 from 9:00am to 7:30pm (AEST/AEDT) from Monday to Friday.

The Morrison Government provided a historic $2.3 billion in the 2020-21 Budget to deliver significant reform of the mental health system and ensure that all Australians have access to high quality, person-centred care as we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic.

This brings health expenditure in mental health and suicide prevention services and supports in 2021–22 to a record high of $6.5 billion.