Program overview Law is a powerful tool to promote public health. Yet despite Australia’s leadership in areas like tobacco control and road safety, law remains underused as a tool to promote healthy and sustainable population diets. The Food Governance Program seeks to change this. Our aim is to improve dietary intake at scale by monitoring the global food supply, assessing food policy impacts, and strategically strengthening food policies and regulations to promote health and sustainability. Program objectives Monitor and evaluate the performance of existing food policies and regulations by leveraging the Institute’s FoodSwitch dataset Analyse regulatory innovation worldwide to develop recommendations on best-practice food regulation Work closely with UN agencies, national and state governments, public health and consumer organisations and academic collaborators to translate evidence into effective law and policy change. View projects

Establish a purpose-built Australian Centre for Disease Control that addresses and accelerates action on the prevention, management and treatment of noncommunicable diseases. Tackling Australia’s biggest health challenge – noncommunicable diseases – requires a greater focus on preventing disease and improving food systems. The Australian Centre for Disease Control, launching on 1 January 20261 should be fit-for-purpose, permanent and focused on addressing both infectious diseases and the national epidemic of noncommunicable diseases. This should be coupled with accountability for the full resourcing, implementation, monitoring and enforcement of the National Preventive Health Strategy2 and National Obesity Strategy.3 This includes, but is not limited to, government-led, mandatory regulations on Front-of-pack labelling – Health Star Rating, Food reformulation – to improve the nutritional value of packaged food, including by reducing salt,sugar, saturated fats and

Implement a blended payment model for primary health care providers, supporting the transition of individual practices and encouraging patients to enrol in such models of care. Early detection and effective management of noncommunicable diseases requires a patient-centred, affordable and accessible health system. While Australia’s health system performs well overall, there are opportunities to improve accessibility and navigation for patients. Minimising out-of-pocket health expenses will help ensure that more Australians can access the care they need without facing financial hardship. There is a clear need to implement a new blended payment model for primary health care providers, one that supports a multidisciplinary, team-based health care that better meets patient needs. Under this model, 60% of funding wouldcome through Medicare fee-for-service system, while the remaining 40% is intended to enable other healthcare professionals to join primary care teams to fund a comprehensive pa

Develop and implement First Nations-led climate action plans that address climate emergency impacts alongside food and water insecurity, as well as health prevention, management and treatment. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are the First Peoples of Australia. Yet, the ongoing impact of colonisation, including racism, continues to have profound and detrimental impacts on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. This has led to disproportionate and inequitable health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Despite successive policies aimed at improving Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health, progress to “close the gap” on health outcomes between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians is not on track. Different ways of thinking about rectifying health inequities faced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are needed, that prioritise self-determination, First Nations knowledges, cultural expression, and connection to Countr

Establish a new Centre of Excellence for Sex and Gender Equity in Health and Medicine to better understand the causes of poor health, and develop better treatments, clinical guidelines and health services for all. Recognising and addressing the diverse health needs, risks and influences women experience at different stages of life should receive an increased and sustained focus beyond reproductive health. This approach ensures women have access to the necessary support to improve their lifelong health and well-being.5 Noncommunicable diseases, including cardiovascular diseases such as stroke and heart attack, are leading causes of mortality for women. However, data on women’s unique needs for preventing and managing these conditions is limited, and risk factors are often underrecognised. This contributes to poorer clinical outcomes and greater complications in women with cardiovascular diseases.6 More research is needed to understand the unique risk factors women face in developing non

Boost ODA to 0.7% by 2030 to continue Australia’s strong leadership in supporting health system strengthening in our region. Australia has a key role to play in supporting our Indo-Pacific neighbours to build resilient and equitable health systems, working towards universal health coverage. This is essential for reducing health disparities, ensuring stability and fostering economic development in the region. The International Development Policy is driving investments to tackle challenges including poverty, economic growth, healthcare, infrastructure investment, climate emergency, food security, disability equity and rights and gender equality.8 It is essential that such investments are guided by the priorities of partner countries and carried out through equitable partnerships with governments, civil society organisations and communities to optimise outcomes and long-term sustainability. Supporting and continuing to increase Official Development Assistance (ODA) will help to address s

Fund health and medical breakthroughs by increasing the National Health and Medical Research Council budget by 30% to cover the full costs of research, both direct and indirect costs. Independent public health and medical research are critical drivers of health innovation, improving health outcomes, reducing healthcare costs, and enhancing the overall quality of life for all Australians. Medical research from 1990 to 2004 delivered net present gains of $78 billion – $52 billion in health gains and a further $26 billion in wider economic gains.10 In a time of unprecedented health challenges, including the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the rising burden of noncommunicable diseases, and emerging health threats such as climate emergency, investing in robust and sustainable public health and medical research is essential. Australia’s research community has consistently demonstrated capacity to deliver world-leading medical and public health innovations, advancing both na