The Ministry of Health () is the government department responsible for managing the health system of Greece. The incumbent minister is Adonis Georgiadis.
Historical background The first systematic efforts to organize Greece's health services began during King Otto's reign, with the establishment of the country's initial health service in 1833. Named the "Hygienic Department," it was one of six departments within the newly formed Ministry of the Interior and was tasked with overseeing public health. From 1894 to 1914, the central administrative body for health services was the "Directorate of Public Hygiene and Perception", also under the Ministry of the Interior. Until 1914, no significant steps were taken to expand health services, as national resources and budget were primarily allocated to preparing a robust military. However, following the Balkan Wars, increased state attention was directed toward addressing the needs of retired soldiers. Consequently, in 1917, previously fragmented health and welfare services were consolidated under a new entity: the "Ministry of Social Welfare". This ministry was responsible for providing care to war victims, orphans, refugees, and families of conscripted soldiers. In December 1922, after Asia Minor Catastrophe the Gonatas government established the "Ministry of Health, Welfare, and Assistance", which absorbed the "Ministry of Social Welfare" created in 1917. Since then, the Ministry of Health has typically encompassed social welfare and, from around 1970, social insurance.
Today, however, social welfare responsibilities and social security functions have been reassigned to the Ministry of Labour and Social Security.
The longest serving Minister of Health was , Minister of Health in the governments of Constantine Karamanlis, who served for a total of 48 months and 5 days.
List of ministers Health and Social Solidarity (2004–2012) Name Took office Left office Party NotesNikitas Kaklamanis10 March 200415 February 2006New DemocracyFirst Cabinet of Kostas KaramanlisDimitris Avramopoulos15 February 20067 October 2009First and Second Cabinet of Kostas KaramanlisMariliza Xenogiannakopoulou7 October 20097 September 2010PASOKCabinet of George PapandreouAndreas Loverdos7 September 201017 May 2012Cabinet of George Papandreou until 11 November 2011; Cabinet of Lucas Papademos thereafter17 May 201221 June 2012IndependentCaretaker Cabinet of Panayiotis Pikrammenos
Health (2012–2015) Name Took office Left office Party Notes21 June 201225 June 2013New DemocracyCabinet of Antonis SamarasAdonis Georgiadis25 June 201310 June 2014Makis Voridis10 June 201427 January 2015
Health, Social Security and Social Solidarity (January 2015–September 2015) Name Took office Left office Party NotesPanagiotis Kouroumplis27 January 201527 August 2015SyrizaFirst Cabinet of Alexis Tsipras28 August 201521 September 2015IndependentCaretaker Cabinet of Vassiliki Thanou-Christophilou
Health (since September 2015) Name Took office Left office Party NotesAndreas Xanthos23 September 20159 July 2019SyrizaSecond Cabinet of Alexis TsiprasVasilis Kikilias9 July 201931 August 2021New DemocracyFirst Cabinet of Kyriakos MitsotakisThanos Plevris31 August 202126 May 202326 May 202327 June 2023IndependentCaretaker Cabinet of Ioannis SarmasMichalis Chrisochoidis 27 June 2023 4 January 2024New DemocracySecond Cabinet of Kyriakos MitsotakisAdonis Georgiadis4 January 2024incumbent
See also Health care in Greece List of hospitals in Greece Panhellenic Association of Ergotherapists
References