PM announces regional health funding round

The federal government is encouraging regional health services to apply for the next round of Labor's $5 billion health and hospitals fund (HHF).

The fourth funding round, like the previous two, is dedicated to hospitals and clinics in the bush. It's worth $475 million.

The HHF was established in early 2009 with $2.9 billion in total going towards regional hospitals, cancer care, chronic disease management and mental and dental health services.

"We know that health circumstances in regional Australia are very different from metropolitan Australia," Prime Minister Julia Gillard told reporters in Canberra when opening the funding round.

"To give you just one example - life expectancy in regional Australia is one to two years lower and for remote areas it is up to seven years lower compared with major cities."

The fourth round will allow regional health services that missed out in the third round to reapply.

Applications close on October 19 and will then be assessed by the independent HHF advisory board. Successful projects will be announced as part of the 2012 budget.