Australia’s ageing population will stimulate growth for some time yet. Australia’s primary healthcare market makes up around $54.7 billion of the total expenditure on health which was estimated at $154.6 billion in 2014.

We review how the theory of ‘disruptive innovation’ could propel the healthcare system in a new direction making it more affordable and available to everyone.

We outline the trend of an ageing and increasingly affluent population; modest population growth, buoyed by increasing life expectancy and growing metropolitan centers; the rising importance of early detection and prevention; and the need for better, more personalized health care services are likely to drive demand for primary health care in Australia.

We forecast spend on primary health care to expand at a CAGR of 3.3% over 2015–16 and 2025–26 and reach A$80.4b or 3.5% of GDP. This is highly susceptible to technological disruption over the next decade.
We review the emergence of various health care-related technologies and how they would drastically disrupt how primary health care is provided worldwide.