The Public Health Association of Australia welcomes the Australian Labor Party's commitment to establishing an Australian Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (ACDC) should it win the federal election on 21 May.
In addition to this Centre, Australia desperately needs a federal commitment to invest in the national Public Health workforce, such as through expanded training programs tailored to local communities, working with states and territories, so as to ensure the pipeline for the future public health leaders and experts.
"Both of these actions would help set Australia up for the looming public health and infectious disease challenges that are coming, because the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated existing weaknesses in our health systems," PHAA CEO, Adjunct Professor Terry Slevin said.
"Our Public Health workforce is under severe strain across the continent, and while political parties don't want to talk about the pandemic this election, the virus continues to spread, take lives, and upend them.
"While the ALP first announced its position on an ACDC in October 2020, we have been mystified by the absence of broader discussion about public and preventive health policies in the election campaign from any of the major parties.
"The ALP policy states the ACDC will focus on pandemic preparedness and management, and on chronic and infectious disease prevention.
"We are pleased that the ALP has also included a charter for chronic non-communicable disease prevention.
"We urge the Coalition, in these last few days before the election, to match that commitment.
"Whoever forms the next Australian government must be prepared to commit resources to improving our capacity to deal with the public health crisis of today, and prepare for the enormous public health crises of the future.
"As we've heard at the Preventive Health 2022 conference underway in Brisbane, the countries which put COVID-19 in a box and fail to learn the lessons are the ones which will be least prepared for the next public health emergency.
"We continue to see announcements about investments in a wide range of programs through this election campaign. But we have learned that, if we do not get public health right, most other parts of society simply cannot function.
"We must fix public health. This election campaign cannot be allowed to finish without specific commitments to the future of public health."
