The Healthcare Cost Burden of Asthma in Children: A Longitudinal Population-Based Study

•For children aged 2 to 9 years only, healthcare costs, which are the sum of Medicare and pharmaceutical costs, are known for a few studied pediatric morbidities in the Australian context.•This study is the first to use a nationally representative Longitudinal Study of Australian Children to evaluate the excess healthcare costs of asthmatic children aged 2 to 18 years, age group-wise and longitudinally.•This new knowledge on the pattern of excess healthcare costs associated with asthma would inform healthcare policy makers about the target groups and how to design and implement project interventions.