| the department of the U.S. government that administers federal programs dealing with public health, welfare, and income security: created in 1979 from the reorganized Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. Abbreviation: HHS |
A department of the federal executive branch responsible for the Social Security Administration, the Public Health Service, and other programs designed to promote public welfare. It was originally called the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, until the separate Department of Education was created in 1979.