Lung Foundation Australia General Manager Policy Advocacy and Prevention Paige Preston said the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare’s (AIHW) latest data is the first time the prevalence rate of COPD has been systematically reported. 

“COPD is a leading cause of death and disease burden in Australia, so monitoring its prevalence is hugely important for measuring the health and economic loads it creates, allowing services to be properly planned for and funded,” Ms Preston said. 

“Captured for the first time, the data has shown more than 365,000 people aged 35 and over, which is 2.7 percent of the Australian population that age, used health services for COPD in the year up to 30 June 2019. 

“This concrete knowledge is a great start, and we need this initial reporting to continue being regularly updated; in line with the actions Lung Foundation Australia have outlined in our Blueprint for Action on Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease 2022-2025.” 

AIHW Head Chronic Conditions Unit Katherine Faulks said as advocates for people with lung disease, Lung Foundation Australia play an important role in our understanding of the lived experience of people with COPD.  

“This new work by the AIHW provides Lung Foundation Australia and related organisations with vital information on the use of health services by people with COPD; which we hope can be used to inform future planning and assess ongoing health and economic burdens of the disease,” Ms Faulks said.  

COPD Advocate Cathy, 61, said she was originally misdiagnosed by health professionals for eight years.  

“Looking back now, with the lack of available treatment for COPD and the stigma that surrounds this disease, I worry that there isn’t much that could have been done if I had been correctly diagnosed earlier. This is the sad part about the lack of research and treatment for COPD,” she said.