Advocacy

AHPA wrote to the Hon. Greg Hunt MP and Hon. Mark Butler MP calling on them to make health promotion and illness prevention a priority this election. AHPA have received a response from the Department of Health (via the First Assistant Secretary, Population Health Division) on behalf of the Minister as the Australian Government is now in a caretaker role. 

AHPA signed up to the Obesity Policy Coalition’s Brands off our kids! statement to support government action to implement four actions for a childhood free from unhealthy food marketing.

AHPA was recently involved in the Raise the Rate for Good - National Day of Action on Wed 27 April which calls on all parties & candidates to commit to increasing income support and investing in social housing.

AHPA recently signed Cancer Council Victoria’s Food Fight campaign to protect our kids from unhealthy food and drink advertising. 

The Australian Health Promotion Association calls on all parties to make health promotion and illness prevention a priority this election.

Signed on to two joint letters led by ACOSS from the community sector to Federal Election candidates calling on them to commit to two game-changer policies to reduce poverty and inequality. These policies are: lift income support payments to above the poverty line so everyone can cover the basic and invest in 25,000 social housing units each year as part of a National Housing Plan.

Advertising for products that cause substantial harm should be required to follow government-led rules that protect our children, families and broader community.  

AHPA joined Obesity Policy Coalition and 20+ other health and consumer orgs to call for more work to be put into food regulatory reforms to put the health of Australians and New Zealanders first. Read more here.

AHPA signed onto the Medical Association for Prevention of War's statement on the ongoing war in Ukraine. Read the Health Professionals’ Statement on Ukraine here.

AHPA was consulted by the Australian Gun Safety Alliance regarding a proposal to the NSW Police Force Firearm Registry Consultation Council on the issue of prescribed blood alcohol levels for the possession and use of a firearm.

AHPA signed the World Health Organisation's (WHO) Call for Action: Managing the Infodemic, a global movement to promote access to health information and to mitigate harm from health misinformation among online and offline communities.

AHPA have signed Australian Feminist Foreign Policy Coalition, supporting an approach which places gender equality as the central goal of foreign policy, in recognition that gender equality is a predictor of peaceful and flourishing societies. 

AHPA recently supported the Australian Society for Pyhsical Activity's (ASPA) Three Transport Priorities. ASPA are calling for support from individuals and organisations. For further information click here.  

The Framework draws on international best practice to outline essential measures to reduce corporate influence and restore balance in our politics. For more information click here. 

AHPA joined FARE and many other health groups in signing the Open letter: Put the health, wellbeing and safety of Australians first and abandon any plans to cut the price of alcohol. 

To view the letter of support click here. 

Developing Case Studies on Multisectoral Action for the Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases and Mental Health.

AHPA submitted a response to the Inquiry into the planning and delivery of school infrastructure in NSW which can be viewed here. 

AHPA and PHAA Health Promotion and Illness Prevention Policy Position Statement (updated)

AHPA and PHAA are pleased to release their joint updated position statement. Useful for upcoming advocacy for health promotion!

AHPA endorsed the ACOSS-led sector statement A Guarantee to the Nation: Community Sector Call to all Parties that calls for politicians to commit to affordable essential services, better income supports and social housing, and climate action now. Read the 8 December media release and download the statement here.

AHPA joined over 35 health and medical groups including the Climate and Health Alliance in producing an open letter to Prime Minister Scott Morrison calling for the Federal Government to scale up international climate commitments to protect the health and wellbeing of Australians and Pacific Island neighbours. This letter comes after international negotiations that took place in Glasgow at COP26. A copy of the letter dated 26 November is available here.

As part of AHPA’s support of the Raise the Age campaign, AHPA signed the open letter from health organisations on the medical evidence for raising the age to at least 14. Read the letter dated 6 December here.

AHPA have endorsed the Healthy, Regenerative and Just: Framework for a national strategy on climate, health and wellbeing for Australia. Click here for more information about the framework.

AHPA submitted a response to the draft National Obesity Prevention Strategy which can be viewed here.

AHPA have developed a Mandatory COVID-19 Vaccination Position Statement, led by AHPA (VIC/TAS Branch) Presidents David Towl and Teresa Capetola. Download the position here.

AHPA seeks Expressions of Interest (EOI) from members to join the time-limited 2022 Election Advocacy Working Group. The Federal Election will occur on or before May 21 2022, and on behalf of our members, AHPA would like to ensure we influence the policy agenda and where required upskill our members in advocacy for health promotion. EOIs should be sent to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by COB 29 October 2021.

For more information click here.

AHPA signed onto the Raise the Age campaign to #RaiseTheAge of criminal responsibility from 10 to at least 14.

AHPA signed the Community Sector Climate Change Declaration to call on the Australian federal government to commit to stronger targets and fair and inclusive policies to cut climate pollution this decade.

AHPA have endorsed the Joint Statement: Safety Advocates Respond to Women’s Safety Summit call for 12 actions to form the foundation of the next National Plan. 

AHPA endorsed Quit and Heart Foundation’s position statement on smoking and vaping cessation. 

To view the position statement click here. 

AHPA collaborated with the Obesity Policy Coalition and other public health and consumer organisations to express support for the following:

1) that public health remains front and centre of reforms to the food regulatory system

2) that the responsibility for Food Standards Australia and New Zealand (FSANZ) is not moved to the Department of Agriculture

To view the letter of support click here.

The QLD Government is developing a new women's strategy. For more information click here.

A National Stigma and Discrimination Reduction Strategy is being developed as a part of the mental health reform agenda, opportunities to provide input will be forthcoming during 2022. For more information click here.

Australian Digital Health Strategy has launched a nationwide online survey as part of a wider process to define a new national strategy around digital health. For more information click here.

AHPA are currently in the process of joining the Planetary Health Alliance. For more information click here. 

AHPA recently signed on to the Australian Council of Social Services’ community sector climate change statement. For more information click here.

AHPA has been actively involved in climate advocacy, including: Provided comments on the Climate and Health Alliance’s draft update of the Framework for a National Strategy on Climate, Health and Well-being for Australia 2021. This update integrates into the document the Healthy, Regenerative and Just policy agenda which CAHA developed in 2020. The framework once again highlights the need for the health and wellbeing sector to play a greater role in addressing the health and societal impacts of climate change and calls for a greater focus on ecology and sustainability. Increased climate literacy and competencies for action are areas of particular interest for AHPA along with a greater focus on integration with other health strategies and frameworks and the prevention agenda.

In June, AHPA joined a consortium of health and consumer organisations to support the Obesity Policy Coalition’s Open Statement, which calls on the Australian Government to prioritise health over profits as they consider reforms to the food regulatory system. For more information click here. 

The key message for Anti-Povery Week 2020 was: Poverty exists. Poverty hurts us all. We can all do something about it. This is a message of hope and not despair. Never has it been truer that poverty can hurt us all as a society and as individuals, in the unexpected chaos of COVID-19 around the world.  NSW&ACT Branch filmed a series of video interviews to explore these key messages and impact of COVID-19 on the sector.  

Take some time to watch each of the insightful videos to learn from practitioners working across health promotion.

AHPA is a member and supporter of the Climate and Health Alliance. Earlier this year they conducted a survey about the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on our health sector members, and the implications it may have for climate advocacy. The key findings have been released.

AHPA made a submission to the National Preventive Health Strategy consultation identifying areas we thought were positive and issues that needed to be addressed more consistently and comprehensively. This included the need for a greater focus on the social determinants of health, the importance of the health promotion workforce and the impact of climate change and the need to embed action on the social determinants of health.

You can read our submission here.

22 September 2020

Climate change must be a central feature of any broad national health strategy. The World Health Organization has described climate change as the defining issue for public health in the 21st century, and it poses significant immediate, medium-term and long-term risks to the health of Australians and communities around the world.

The attached joint statement calls on the Health Minister to recognise climate change in the National Preventive Health Strategy, currently in development.

Please read more by reviewing the statement here

The Doctors for the Environment is rolling our 'No Time for Games' Campaign outside Parliament House on the 27.11.18. The campaign enables and encourages doctors, nurses and allied health professionals to take action through pledging support for four key recommendations. These recommendations address climate change and health, and particularly the health benefits for children and future generations.

As a member of the Climate and Health Alliance we encourage you to support this campaign. To find out how you can be involved visit: https://notimeforgames.dea.org.au/ or No Time For Games Flyer. 

The Australian Health Promotion Association – Queensland Branch has prepared a submission in response to the Queensland Sport and Active Recreation 2019 - 2029 discussion paper - see the paper here.

Read AHPA Queensland's submission here

Gemma Crawford, AHPA President has led a blog piece for Croakey on called "Ten ideas on careful stewardship for the public’s health: suggestions for making submissions". 

The WA Legislative Council has launched an inquiry into “Personal Choice and Community Safety”, with a focus on public health initiatives involving government regulation. Submissions are due by October 5.

The authors of the article below have plenty of ideas on how to make an effective submission to this and other such inquiries, while also reminding us of why careful, evidence-informed stewardship is good for the public’s health. In addition to their article below, the authors have provided a #LongRead version, which will no doubt be of interest to many attending the Public Health Association of Australia’s conference in Cairns this week (See #AustPH2018 for more conference news).

AHPA is a supporter of the End Alcohol Advertising in Sport Campaign run by FARE. You can get involved in this campaign by sending a petition postcard to Senator the Hon. Mitch Fifield,
Minister for Communications calling for removal of alcohol ads from TV screens, uniforms, change rooms and venues and alignment professional sports with healthy brands. Download the petition postcard today. 

AHPA SA in collaboration with other health and community services agencies organised extensive activities in relation to the SA March election. Here’s a wrap up!

AHPA recently sent a letter to the HESTA superannuation fund congratulating them on their Climate Change Policy.

AHPA SA in collaboration with other health and community services agencies has prepared a vision statement for a healthy, flourishing South Australian Community.

AHPA members are encouraged to sign an open letter to the Victorian EPA to reduce pollution

AHPA members are encouraged to sign an open letter to the Victorian EPA to reduce pollution.