Minister for Health (Australia)


The Australian Minister for Health is responsible for national health and wellbeing and medical research. The Hon Greg Hunt has served as Minister for Health since 2017, and briefly left office in 2018 following criticism of the leadership of Malcolm Turnbull.
The Minister for Aged Care and Senior Australians is Richard Colbeck since May 2019. Ken Wyatt held the position from 2017 to 2018, having previously served as the Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care since September 2015.
In the Government of Australia, the ministers are responsible for national health and medical research policy. The minister provides direction and oversight of the Department of Health.

History

Under Section 55 of the Australian Constitution, the Commonwealth Parliament had the power to "make laws for the peace, order and good government of the Commonwealth with respect to Quarantine." This was the only area of public health in which the Commonwealth had authority at the time of Federation. The federal parliament did not use this power until the proclamation of the Quarantine Act 1908, on 30 March 1908. The control of the administration of quarantine was under the administration of the Minister for Trade and Customs from 1908 until 1921. This Minister's responsibilities in health matters increased as the Australian Government took a greater role in the provision of public health services during the early 20th century, in particular after the First World War.
A separate Department of Health was established on 10 March 1921, and the position of Minister for Health was then formally created in the fifth Hughes Ministry. The role of the Department of Health has continued to expand and further federal responsibility for health was authorised by the passage, at referendum, of a constitutional amendment in 1946. From 1987 until the establishment of the current department in 2013, the department controlled by the minister had various different names – Department of Community Services and Health, Department of Health, Housing and Community Services, Department of Health, Housing, Local Government and Community Services, Department of Human Services and Health, Department of Health and Family Services, Department of Health and Aged Care, and Department of Health and Ageing.
Section 51 of the Constitution now states the Commonwealth Parliament has the power to
make laws for the peace, order and good government of the Commonwealth with respect to the provision of maternity allowances, widows' pensions, child endowment, unemployment, pharmaceutical, sickness and hospital benefits, medical and dental services, benefits to students and family allowances.

As a result of this amendment the federal government now has a key role in financing and providing medical services through entities such as Medicare and the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.
From 1972 to 1975 under Doug Everingham, the Ministry was named the "Ministry of Helth " in some informal contexts due to Everingham's support of Spelling Reform.

List of health ministers

The following individuals have been appointed as Minister for Health, or any of its precedent titles:
Notes

List of ministers for aged care

The following individuals have been appointed as the Minister for Aged Care and Senior Australians, or any of its precedent titles:

Former ministerial posts

List of assistant health ministers

The following individual has been appointed as the Assistant Health Minister, or any of its precedent titles:

List of ministers for indigenous health

The following individuals have been appointed as Minister for Indigenous Health, or any of its precedent titles:

List of ministers for rural health

The following individuals have been appointed as Minister for Rural Health, or any of its precedent titles: