Arthritis research has been given a $100 million 10-year funding boost as part of a mission to be established.
The funding was announced by PM Anthony Albanese recently in launching the Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Conditions Research Mission.
The launch was held at the opening of the Institute for Musculoskeletal Health in Sydney on Thursday, June 11.
“For millions of Australians, living with arthritis isn’t just an ache or pain; it affects their ability to work, to stay active and to enjoy everyday life,” he says.
“As the son of a mother who suffered from rheumatoid arthritis, that mission is particularly close to my heart.
“I saw the pain and difficulty of that disease, and how it can make a person suffer but I also know that those conditions do not define an individual,” he says.
“My government’s $100m investment … will back Australian researchers to develop better treatments, improve diagnosis and help find the breakthroughs patients have been waiting for.”
The Mission will be established through the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) and unite researchers, health professionals, industry partners and patients to improve prevention, diagnosis and treatment of the debilitating condition.
More than seven million Australians live with the condition, and other musculoskeletal ones, which can strike at any age.
The funding is part of a 2026-27 Federal Budget allocation of $508.5m
over four years to increase MRFF spending from $650m to $1 billion a year.
ARTHRITIS AUSTRALIA REACTS
Arthritis Australia CEO Louise Hardy called the news “a truly historic day” for all sufferers.
“This Mission will drive the research breakthroughs we so urgently need — from earlier diagnosis, improved treatments, to the hope of cures.”
She says it will bring hope to those living with over 100 different conditions, ranging from osteoarthritis and back pain to autoimmune illnesses.
Research Australia analysis, commissioned by Arthritis Australia, projects that over the next decade the Mission could spark a two-fold reduction in cases in the health system and result in a $361 million productivity boost to the economy.
“(The) Mission provides the opportunity we have been waiting for to improve quality of life for those living with these debilitating conditions, reduce the strain on our health care system and strengthen workforce participation,” Hardy says.
“There has been extraordinary collaboration from across the sector over many years of advocacy. The whole community has spoken with one voice.
“Arthritis Australia, state and territory arthritis organisations and other patient groups, the Australian Rheumatology Association, clinicians, researchers and research institutes have been united in advocacy for this crucial goal.”
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