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New national death figures reinforce growing evidence that too many Australians are not receiving the asthma care they need to stay well.
New Australian Bureau of Statistics data released today shows 484 Australians died from asthma in 2025, up from 478 deaths in 2024. This is the highest number of asthma deaths recorded in 10 years.
Women continue to bear a disproportionate burden, accounting for almost two-thirds of asthma deaths. In 2025, 315 women died from asthma compared with 169 men.
The rise comes as recent Australian research shows asthma outcomes among adults have gone backwards. Between 2012 and 2021, the proportion of adults with well-controlled asthma fell from 54.4 per cent to 48 per cent, while urgent asthma healthcare use rose from 28.6 per cent to 37.9 per cent. More adults were living with uncontrolled asthma while using little or no preventer treatment, and adherence among those using inhaled corticosteroids also worsened[i].
Asthma Australia CEO Kate Miranda said the figures should be a wake-up call.
“Asthma deaths are now at their highest level in a decade. We have effective treatments and clear clinical guidelines, yet too many Australians are not getting the care they need to stay well,” Ms Miranda said.
“Poorly controlled asthma increases the risk of severe attacks and death. Rising deaths alongside worsening asthma control tell us we need to look seriously at how asthma is being managed in the community.”
The Australian Asthma Handbook now recommends anti-inflammatory reliever treatment for adults and adolescents with mild asthma and advises that “blue puffer” relievers should no longer be used alone in people aged 12 and over. Yet significant gaps remain between best practice and the care people receive.
Around 32,000 Australians were hospitalised with asthma in 2023–24, and 90 per cent of these hospitalisations were potentially preventable with better care in the community.
“When nine in ten asthma hospitalisations are preventable, hundreds of asthma deaths each year reflect a failure to manage asthma well in the community. They should never be accepted as inevitable,” Ms Miranda said.
Asthma Australia says women must be at the centre of the response. Women account for almost two-thirds of asthma deaths in Australia, a pattern that has persisted year after year and shows how often opportunities to identify and manage women’s asthma are being missed.
Women already engage with the health system regularly throughout their lives, including through GP visits, routine health assessments, contraception and pregnancy care, and menopause and midlife health checks. Yet asthma is rarely part of these conversations.
Asthma Australia is calling for respiratory health checks to be built into the healthcare women already access, alongside greater awareness and uptake of guideline-concordant asthma care.
“Women are not falling through the cracks because they are absent from the health system. They are falling through the cracks while they are in it,” Ms Miranda said.
“Every one of those appointments is a chance to ask about breathing, check asthma control and make sure women are on the right treatment. A simple respiratory check can trigger a proper asthma review before a woman reaches crisis point. We need to make those conversations routine.”
ENDS
For more information
Contact: Kate Miranda, CEO, Asthma Australia
0491 137 548
ABOUT
Asthma Australia is the nation’s peak body representing nearly 2.8 million Australians living with asthma. Our work is grounded in evidence and informed by the lived experience of people with asthma. Our programs reflect a commitment to outcomes-focused, equity-driven reform, integrating community insight and clinical expertise to strengthen person centred asthma care.
References:
[i] H. K. Reddel, M. R. Ampon, L. M. Poulos, et al., “Worsening Asthma Outcomes in Australian Adults: A Comparison of Stratified Sample Surveys in 2012 and 2021,” Medical Journal of Australia 224, no. 6 (2026): e70221, https://doi.org/10.5694/mja2.70221.
