Do alcohol price control measures adequately consider the health of very remote Australians? Minimum Unit Price in the Northern Territory

Alcohol is one of the leading preventable causes of death and disability worldwide and its harmful use is especially problematic within the Northern Territory, Australia. Alcohol-related harms may be categorised as either lifetime harms, which can include chronic liver disease, diabetes, heart attack and cancer; or single occasion harms, which can include assault, suicide and self-inflicted injuries, and road traffic injuries. Both lifetime and single occasion harms are disproportionately noted among those living in very remote locations; according to the Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS) Remoteness Structure, Darwin is outer regional, Katherine and Alice Springs are remote, and the rest of the Northern Territory is very remote. Of those living in both outer regional and very remote Northern Territory locations, 29% drink at levels that place them at risk of lifetime harm, and 43% of individuals living in very remote Northern Territory drink at levels that place them at significant risk of harm on a single occasion at least monthly. As a comparison, in the major cities of Victoria, Australian Capital Territory, South Australia and New South Wales, only 14–15% of people drink at levels that put them at risk of lifetime harm, and 22.5–24% drink at levels that place them at risk of harm on a single occasion. Recent estimates indicate that harm caused by alcohol-related incidents costs the Northern Territory approximately $1.38 billion a year.