and others; and Communicating public health information to Canadians via different channels. The chief public health officer was the head of the Public Health Agency of Canada until 2014, in which government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper reorganized the management structure of PHAC through a 2014 omnibus budget bill and instituted a parallel presidential-structure and position to govern the organization, that then could be staffed by non-medical and non-scientific personnel. The NDP health critic said at the time that: "To bury it in an omnibus bill says to me that they don't want people to know about it and they don't want questions," while Health Minister Rona Ambrose said that "the idea for the new structure came from the agency itself," which was led at the time on an interim basis for the previous 16 months by Gregory W. Taylor. Areas of focus 2017–present Theresa Tam, who has held the position since June 26 2017, released a vision statement in early 2018. She wishes to pay particular attention to the reduction of health discrepancies in the country, which includes collaborating with and reducing the socioeconomic gap of Indigenous Peoples. Her six areas of focus are currently: The risks of antimicrobial resistance and the correct use of antibiotics; Building healthy environments that reduce health discrepancies; The championing of youth health; The reduction of blood-borne and sexually transmitted infections; The reduction of Tuberculosis in at-risk populations; and Promoting education on substances (especially alcohol, opioids and marijuana), particularly their effects on youth As CPHO, Tam wrote Fifteen years post-SARS: Key milestones in Canada's public health emergency response, in which she remarked somewhat presciently as it turns out that: Chief public health officers Theresa Tam is the third and present CPHO. Initially taking on the role in an acting capacity on December 16, 2016 following the retirement of Gregory Taylor, Tam was formally appointed on June 26, 2017, and led the Government of Canada's COVID-19 response in 2020. See also Medical officer of health Chief Medical Officer (United Kingdom) Chief Medical Officer, Republic of Ireland Surgeon General of the United States Notes References External links Chief Public Health Officer of Canada Public Health Agency of Canada Canadian health officials Canada