Risk of impoverishing expenditure for surgical care in Australia

Australia: Risk of impoverishing expenditure for surgical care was 0.1% in 2021. ▼ Falling

Latest (2021)
0.1%
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
114th
of 134 countries
All-time high
0.2%
in 2008
All-time low
0.0%
in 2009
Years of data
17
2003–2021

Risk of impoverishing expenditure for surgical care in Australia, 2003–2021

00.050.10.150.22003201220212003: 0.1 % of people at risk2004: 0.1 % of people at risk2005: 0.1 % of people at risk2008: 0.2 % of people at risk2009: 0 % of people at risk2010: 0.1 % of people at risk2011: 0.1 % of people at risk2012: 0.1 % of people at risk2013: 0.1 % of people at risk2014: 0.1 % of people at risk2015: 0.1 % of people at risk2016: 0.1 % of people at risk2017: 0.1 % of people at risk2018: 0.1 % of people at risk2019: 0 % of people at risk2020: 0.1 % of people at risk2021: 0.1 % of people at risk

Source: Program in Global Surgery and Social Change (PGSSC), Harvard Medical School. Measured in % of people at risk.

Analysis

Australia recorded 0.1% for risk of impoverishing expenditure for surgical care in 2021.

That represents a change of unchanged over ten years.

Over the whole period, risk of impoverishing expenditure for surgical care in Australia peaked at 0.2% in 2008 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 2009.

Australia ranks 114th of 134 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 17 years of available data.

Risk of impoverishing expenditure for surgical care in Australia, year by year

Annual values for Risk of impoverishing expenditure for surgical care (% of people at risk) in Australia, 2003 to 2021.
Year % of people at risk Change
2003 0.1%
2004 0.1% +0.0%
2005 0.1% +0.0%
2008 0.2% +100.0%
2009 0.0% -100.0%
2010 0.1%
2011 0.1% +0.0%
2012 0.1% +0.0%
2013 0.1% +0.0%
2014 0.1% +0.0%
2015 0.1% +0.0%
2016 0.1% +0.0%
2017 0.1% +0.0%
2018 0.1% +0.0%
2019 0.0% -100.0%
2020 0.1%
2021 0.1% +0.0%

Australia compared with similar countries

  • Australia's 0.1% is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.1%, 1.0× the median. (40 countries reporting)
  • Australia's 0.1% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 16.6%, 1% of the median. (18 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 0.1% 0.0% 0.2% 5
2010s 0.1% 0.0% 0.1% 10
2020s 0.1% 0.1% 0.1% 2

Countries ranked near Australia

  1. 114 Croatia 0.1% compare
  2. 114 Japan 0.1% compare
  3. 114 Korea 0.1% compare
  4. 114 United Arab Emirates 0.1% compare

See the full ranking of 173 places →

More health data for Australia

All data for Australia →

Frequently asked questions

What is risk of impoverishing expenditure for surgical care in Australia?
Risk of impoverishing expenditure for surgical care in Australia was 0.1% in 2021, according to Program in Global Surgery and Social Change (PGSSC), Harvard Medical School.
What is the highest risk of impoverishing expenditure for surgical care recorded in Australia?
The highest recorded value was 0.2% in 2008.
What is the lowest risk of impoverishing expenditure for surgical care recorded in Australia?
The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 2009.
How does Australia rank for risk of impoverishing expenditure for surgical care?
Australia ranks 114th out of 134 countries with data for 2021.
Is risk of impoverishing expenditure for surgical care rising or falling in Australia?
Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Australia data come from?
The figures come from Program in Global Surgery and Social Change (PGSSC), Harvard Medical School, published as part of Risk of impoverishing expenditure for surgical care (% of people at risk). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Risk of impoverishing expenditure for surgical care in Australia. Statizoid, drawing on Program in Global Surgery and Social Change (PGSSC), Harvard Medical School. Retrieved 17 September 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/stat/risk-of-impoverishing-expenditure-for-surgical-care-percent-of-people-at-risk/australia/

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About this data

Indicator
Risk of impoverishing expenditure for surgical care (% of people at risk)
Unit
% of people at risk
Source
Program in Global Surgery and Social Change (PGSSC), Harvard Medical School
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
173 places, 3,065 data points, 2003–2022
Last refreshed

The proportion of population at risk of impoverishing expenditure when surgical care is required. Impoverishing expenditure is defined as direct out of pocket payments for surgical and anaesthesia care which drive people below a poverty threshold (using a threshold of $2.15 PPP/day).