The Department of Human Services is an Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

n Government

Government of Australia

The Commonwealth of Australia is a federal constitutional monarchy under a parliamentary democracy. The Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901 as a result of an agreement among six self-governing British colonies, which became the six states...

 agency which is responsible for delivering a range of welfare, social services, health services and other services for the Australian Government.

The Department of Human Services delivers its services through five programs: Australian Hearing

Australian Hearing

Australian Hearing is the largest Australian hearing aid dispensing company. They provide hearing care and technologies. One of their areas of interest is hearing testing and rehabilitation of children before they turn 21....

; Centrelink

Centrelink

Centrelink is the trading name of the Commonwealth Service Delivery Agency , a statutory authority responsible for delivering human services on behalf of agencies of the Commonwealth Government of Australia. The majority of Centrelink's services are the disbursement of social security payments...

; Child Support; CRS Australia and Medicare

Medicare Australia

Medicare Australia is an agency of the Australian Government that administers health-related programs including Medicare, the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme , and others. It is a prescribed agency under the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997 and a statutory agency within the...

The head of the department is the Secretary of the Department of Human Services who is responsible to the Minister for Human Services. The current Minister for Human Services

Minister for Human Services (Australia)

The position of Minister for Human Services within Australian politics is currently held by the Hon. Tanya Plibersek MP. The Minister is responsible for a number of welfare agencies and administers her portfolio through the Department of Human Services and its component bodies:* Child Support...

 is the Hon Tanya Plibersek

Tanya Plibersek

Tanya Joan Plibersek, MP , is an Australian politician with the Australian Labor Party, and Federal Minister for Social Inclusion and Minister for Human Services. She has been a member of the Australian House of Representatives since October 1998, representing the seat of Sydney, New South Wales...

, MP.

History

The Department of Human Services was created on 26 October 2004 as part of the Australian Government's Finance and Administration portfolio. At the time of the department's creation, it incorporated the Child Support Agency and CRS Australia.

The Human Services Legislation Amendment Act 2011 integrated the services of Centrelink, Medicare Australia and CRS Australia into the Department of Human Services, with effect from 1 July 2011.

Responsibilities

Currently, the Department of Human Services is responsible for administering the following Australian legislation.

• Australian Hearing Services Act 1991
• Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989
• Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988
• Child Support Legislation Amendment (Reform of the Child Support Scheme – Initial Measures) Act 2006
• Child Support Legislation Amendment (Reform of the Child Support Scheme – New Formula and other Measures) Act 2006
• Commonwealth Services Delivery Agency Act 1997
• Medicare Australia Act 1973

External links

• Department of Human Services Website