New CDC to Bring Australia in Line with OECD Nations, Fix Pandemic Readiness

As the only OECD country without an equivalent disease control organisation, this positions Australia in line with other member nations.

An external view of the Royal Children Hospital in Melbourne, Australia, on Feb. 26, 2015. Luis Ascui/Getty Images

The Albanese government has announced to allocate $251.7 million (US$165 million) to establish Australia’s first Centre for Disease Control (CDC). As the only OECD country without an equivalent disease control organisation, this positions Australia in line with other member nations.

Labor’s Health Minister Mark Butler highlighted the urgency for a CDC, citing Australia’s lack of preparedness for COVID-19, which resulted from the absence of a national pandemic response drill over the past 12 years.