Social Impact Investing for better health

Research Australia’s submission to Treasury in response to the discussion paper on Social Impact Investing has advocated that interventions designed to improve health outcomes be explicitly acknowledged as within the scope of the proposed social investing framework.

Research Australia believes that Social Impact Investing could be an effective mechanism for funding and evaluating some pilot projects and clinical trials designed to implement and evaluate new evidence based practices and interventions. The benefits of implementing successful new interventions include better population health, improved patient care, and efficiency gains in the Australian healthcare system. These provide quantifiable social and financial gains that make the funding of these measures amenable to Social Impact Investing.

Research Australia Submission Social Impact Investing

Financial System Inquiry

The Financial System Inquiry is examining the role and function of Australia’s Financial System. Research Australia’s submission emphasises the critical role the financial system plays in supporting innovation and proposes that this should be a key aim of any government intervention in, and regulation of, the financial system. It makes the case for governments to work with private sector capital to invest in innovative companies, and provides examples of how social impact bonds can be utilised to translate research into practice in the healthcare system.

Financial Systems Inquiry

Social Impact Bonds – Submission to the SA Government

The South Australian Government issued a discussion paper seeking on the suitability of Social Impact Bonds to fund innovative new programs. Research Australia’s submission proposes the use of Social Impact Bonds to address the well recognised problem of translating research outcomes and discoveries into practice in the health system. Specifically, Research Australia believes that Social Impact Bonds could be an effective mechanism for funding and evaluating pilot projects and clinical trials designed to implement and evaluate new evidence based practices and interventions. The benefits of implementing successful new interventions are improved patient care and efficiency gains in the South Australian health care system.

Social Impact Bonds South Australia