Legislation tabled today in parliament to make permanent the interim Australian Centre for Disease Control (Aus CDC) is a momentous and welcome step forward for health, and is testament to decades of persistent advocacy, the country's peak body for public health says.
"We're thrilled because this decision by the Albanese Government to deliver on its promise to legislate to create the Aus CDC is the fulfilment of something that Australia has needed for decades," said PHAA CEO, Adj Prof Terry Slevin.
"Subject to the passage of the Australian Centre for Disease Control Bill 2025 through the Senate, the timetable of the new agency opening its doors on 1 January 2026 can now be met.
"We look forward to Parliament finalising the details in the next few months so that the new Aus CDC can get cracking, and be ambitious in its goals.
"There is an absolutely packed agenda for this agency. With Australia facing challenges like the threat of bird flu, and public health misinformation and falling immunisation rates, the Australian CDC will provide a central, credible source of information. We hope it will grow and evolve to a key leadership role in public health in Australia, and be resourced accordingly.
"We don't know when the next infectious pandemic may come, but this agency helps us get prepared. And when it comes it will lead the response. While infectious disease preparedness and response is the immediate priority, the Aus CDC will also play an important role in chronic disease prevention. There are also many people across the continent who are suffering much preventable non-communicable chronic disease.
"We hope we will look back on 2025, and the efforts of Health Minister Mark Butler especially, as a turning point in the nation's health.
"We look forward to reviewing the detail of the bill."
