The Australian Respiratory Council has a long and proud place in the history of public health in NSW. Founded before World War I as the, National Association for the Prevention and Cure of Consumption, it opened the first anti-tuberculosis dispensary in Australia in September 1912. Over the years the name was changed to reflect the changing mission of the organisation. In the early 1930s it became The Anti-Tuberculosis Association of New South Wales. The name was changed to Community Health and Anti-Tuberculosis Association in 1973. In mid-2001 the name was again changed to Community Health and Tuberculosis Australia (CHATA) reflecting the associations refocus on respiratory disease in the international context, with particular interest the Western Pacific Region. After lengthy consideration, the association became known as the Australian Respiratory Council (ARC) in 2006, broadening its focus to incorporate the spectrum of respiratory disease, with particular interest in those diseases affecting the socially and economically disadvantaged communities.