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U.S. Public Health Service
Passage of an act for the relief of sick and disabled seamen, which established a federal network of hospitals for the care of merchant seamen, forerunner of today's U.S. Public Health Service. -
Food & Drug Administration
President Lincoln appointed a chemist, Charles M. Wetherill, to serve in the new Department of Agriculture. This was the beginning of the Bureau of Chemistry, forerunner to the Food and Drug Administration. -
Surgeon General
Appointment of the first Supervising Surgeon (later called Surgeon General) for the Marine Hospital Service, which had been organized the prior year. -
National Institutes of Health
The federal government opened a one-room laboratory on Staten Island for research on disease, thereby planting the seed that was to grow into the National Institutes of Health. -
Immigration
Immigration legislation was passed, assigning the Marine Hospital Service the responsibility for medical examination of arriving immigrants. -
Childrens Bureau
President Theodore Roosevelt's first White House Conference urged creation of the Children's Bureau to combat exploitation of children. -
Smoking & Health Report
Release of the first Surgeon General's Report on Smoking and Health. -
Department of Health & Human Services
The Department of Education Organization Act was signed into law, providing for a separate Department of Education. HEW became the Department of Health and Human Services, officially arriving on May 4, 1980. -
AIDS
Identification of AIDS. In 1984, the HIV virus was identified by PHS and French scientists. In 1985, a blood test to detect HIV was licensed. -
Food Label
The Nutrition Labeling and Education Act was passed, authorizing the food label.
