Canberra:
Alcohol causes 15 deaths and hospitalises 430 Australians every day with the numbers rapidly increasing over the past decade, a new study released on Thursday said.
VicHealth and Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education (FARE) funded the study, and it found 5,554 deaths and 157,132 hospitalisations were caused by alcohol since 2010, Xinhua reported.
The study said that the number of deaths has increased by 62 percent since the study was last undertaken a decade ago.
FARE chief executive Michael Thorn said Australian governments can no longer ignore the urgent need for decisive and effective action to reduce the rising toll.
"A decade ago alcohol was responsible for 3,430 deaths per year. Now that figure stands at 5,554. Governments can't afford to wait another 10 years to act. Only decisive, evidence-based action will stem Australia's worsening alcohol toll," Thorn said.
Thorn said population-wide measures that address the price, promotion and availability of alcohol would not only save lives but also deliver significant financial savings to cash-strapped governments.
VicHealth also said that this study highlights the dangers of alcohol and a need to approach Australia' s drinking problem from all angles.