Information about the department's functions and government funding allocation could be found in the Administrative Arrangements Orders, the annual Portfolio Budget Statements, in the department's annual reports and on the department's website.
According to the Administrative Arrangements Order made on 26 November 2001, the department dealt with:[5]
Services for the aged, including carers
Public health and medical research
Health promotion and disease prevention
Primary health care of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people
Pharmaceutical benefits
Health benefits schemes
Specific health services, including human quarantine
National drug abuse strategy
Regulation of quality of therapeutic goods
Notification and assessment of industrial chemicals
Gene technology regulation
Structure
The department was an Australian Public Service department, staffed by officials who were responsible to the Minister and assisting parliamentary secretary.[1]
The secretary of the department was Jane Halton, appointed in January 2002.[1][4][6]