You might have seen there’s $588.5m to establish a “national low intensity digital mental health service” for people with mild mental health concerns. Exactly what that’ll look like and how it’ll work is TBC.

The good news is it’ll be free to access, and you won’t need a referral. The bad news is it won’t be operational until 2026 – when the government expects 150,000 people to use it every year.

The budget did include $29.9 million to expand free community-based mental health services under the “Head to Health” banner for those with moderate to severe mental health issues.

The sector, however, expected more funding for adults with complex mental health needs.

We tried calling the Head to Health 1800 number last night to find out what services were available. Turns out they operate Monday to Friday, during business hours. Not great in a crisis.

For those with severe and complex needs there’s $71.7 million to provide wraparound care in primary care settings, such as GPs and pharmacists.

Psychiatrists have called the lack of funding to grow the mental health workforce “extremely disappointing” with the RANZCP saying there’s not enough funding or specialists to treat complex chronic and severe mental illnesses.