Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008

The Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008 received Royal Assent in September 2008. 

The Act takes effect on 1 January 2010. 

The new Act replaces the previous Health Act 1958. It will update and modernise Victoria’s public health framework. The Act is a key piece of legislation designed to protect the health of the population.

The Act is available on the Victorian Legislation and Parliamentary Documents website. 

The Act covers a wide range of matters and has implications for many including:

• authorised officers within local councils and the Department of Human Services
• pest control operators
• cooling tower operators
• the governance and management of a range of consultative councils established under the Act
• the management of infectious diseases, micro-organisms and medical conditions by medical and health practitioners, the Victorian Chief Health Officer and affected individuals
• the development of public health policy through providing for municipal public health and wellbeing plans, a State public health and wellbeing plan and in some circumstances, health impact assessments.

Developing Regulations under the Act

The new Act provides for regulations to be made. These will be effective from 1 January 2010. These regulations will replace current regulations made under the Health Act 1958.

The regulations are likely to cover:

• cooling tower systems
• pest control licensing
• notification, management and control of infectious disease, including public swimming pools and spas
• notification of high lead levels in blood
• immunisation
• prescribed accommodation
• governance and management of a number of consultative councils established under the Act.

In November and December 2008 the department held targeted preliminary consultations with a range of affected stakeholders in relation to proposed regulations. Further consultations are planned for early 2009. 

Further information

For further information in relation to cooling towers, warm water systems and public pools and spas regulations please contact:

Noel Cleaves
Manager, Legionella and Radiation Safety
Environmental Health Unit
Tel: 9096 0417
Email: noel.cleaves@dhs.vic.gov.au

For further information in relation to immunisation and infectious diseases regulations please contact:

Rodney Moran
Manager, Communicable Disease Prevention and Control
Policy, Planning and Information
Tel: 9096 5133
Email: rodney.moran@dhs.vic.gov.au

For further information in relation to pest control regulations please contact:

Katherine Smith
Manager, Pest Control Program
Food Safety and Regulatory Activities
Tel: 9096 5472
Email: katherine.smith@dhs.vic.gov.au

For further information in relation to consultative council regulations please contact:

Dean Ward
Senior Policy Adviser
Policy Instruments and Compliance Unit
State wide Quality Branch
Tel: 9096 6942
Email: dean.ward@dhs.vic.gov.au

Formal consultations will occur through the regulatory impact statement process.  A copy of the regulatory impact statement and accompanying draft regulations will be sent to key stakeholders for comment in the second half of 2009. 

Stakeholders will have 28 days to provide written comment to the department on the regulatory impact statement.

Municipal public health planning

Recent amendments to the Health Act 1958 mean Councils are required to prepare a Municipal Public Health Plan within 12 months of the last local council general elections – that is by 27 November 2009. Plans will cover the period November 2009 to November 2013.

• New requirements address the development, implementation and evaluation of Municipal Public Health Plans. 
• As far as is practicable Councils should prepare a new plan or amend their existing plan to ensure consistency with the new requirements by 27 November 2009.  

The Department recognises that a significant number of councils are involved in the bushfire recovery effort and that this will continue over the coming months. We understand that Councils servicing bushfire affected municipalities or that have diverted resources to such areas may have difficulty meeting this timeline or making significant changes to their plans. These councils are encouraged to contact their DHS regional public health manager at the earliest possible opportunity to discuss these matters.

The amendments are intended to facilitate the smooth transition to new public health planning laws that will come into effect on 1 January 2010 under the Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008.

They are also designed to bring all Councils onto the same planning cycle based on a synchronised, four-yearly cycle linked to the general election cycle, in preparation for implementing the new laws.

A factsheet about the new requirements was forwarded to councils in March 2009.

For further information councils should contact their DHS Regional Public Health Manager.

Background to the development of the Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008

To support the development of the new legislative framework, the Victorian Government conducted a major review of the Health Act 1958. This included the release of a discussion paper in 2004 and a and a draft policy paper in 2005 (see below).

Review of the Health Act 1958: A new legislative framework for public health in Victoria (pdf, 430kb)

Review of the Health Act 1958: Draft policy paper - for consultation (pdf, 1.45mb)