ABSTRACT
The regulatory landscape for complementary medicines in Australia has been influenced by a variety of key stakeholders within the context of a constantly evolving political backdrop. This chapter aims to provide the reader with an understanding of the way complementary medicines are regulated in Australia, and the factors that have helped shape this process. Section II aims to provide the reader with an outline of the current regulatory framework for therapeutic goods in Australia and how complementary medicines are regulated within this framework. Section III outlines the key stakeholder groups and political factors that have been influential in determining the nature of the system, degree of regulatory oversight and process involved in the regulation of complementary medicines. As these forces are inextricably linked, the subsequent sections consider policy and policy drivers, within their relative historical context (Section IV), and potential future developments in regulatory policy based on current political and social trends (Section V).
