Mental Institution Benefits Act 1948 (Cth)

1948.

MENTAL INSTITUTION BENEFITS.

No. 78 of 1948.

A n A c t relating to Mental Institution Benefits.

[Assented to 17th December, 1948.]

BE it enacted by the King's Most Excellent Majesty, the Senate, Australia, as fo l lows:—

and the House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of

Short title. 1. This Act may be cited as the Mental Institution Benefits Act

1948. Menial Institution Benefits. No. 78.

2. This Act shall come into operation on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.	Commencement.
3. The execution, on behalf o f the Commonwealth, o f agreements with all or any of the States, relating to the provision of mental	Agreements
relating to
mental
institution
institution benefits, substantially in accordance with the heads o f	benefits.
agreement set out in the Schedule t o this Act, is hereby authorized.
4. Payments for the purposes of any agreement the execution o f which is authorized by this Act shall be made out o f the Trust	Payments
to be made
from National Welfare Fund.
Account established under the National Welfare Fund Act 1943-1945 and known as the National Welfare Fund.

T H E SCHEDULE. Section 3.

MENTAL INSTITUTION BENEFITS:HEADS OF AGREEMENT.

1. The agreement shall not have any force or effect unless and until authorized or approved by the Parliament of the State concerned.

2. The agreement shall be in force for a minimum period of five years and there- after shall be subject to termination after (here specify a period of notice by either party

of not less than one year).

3. The Commonwealth shall, subject to compliance by the State with the pro- visions of the agreement, pay to the State, by way of financial assistance, in respect of qualified persons in mental institutions, amounts determined in accordance with the agreement.

4. The amount to be paid by the Commonwealth to the State for any financial year or part thereof in respect of qualified persons shall be determined by multiplying the Commonwealth Mental Institution Benefit Bate by the number of patient-days in that financial year or part thereof.

5. The State shall ensure that no means test is imposed on, and that no fees are charged to or in respect of, qualified persons.

6. The State shall ensure that, except with the concurrence of the Commonwealth,

no charge is made to or in respect of qualified persons for services or comforts for

which it was not customary to make a charge as at the first day of November, 1948.

7. For the purposes of the agreement, the number of patient-days in a financial

year or part thereof shall be the sum of the number of complete days on which each

qualified person was a patient in a mental institution during that financial year or

part thereof (the day of admission and the day of discharge being together counted

as one day).

8. The agreement may contain such incidental and supplementary provisions as

are necessary to give effect to the Commonwealth Mental Institution Benefits Scheme.

9. The agreement shall contain definitions substantially to the following effect

and such other definitions as are necessary:—

"the Commonwealth Mental Institution Benefit Bate" means (here insert

amount) or such other rate as is, from time to time, agreed upon between

the Commonwealth and the State;

"mental institution" means a hospital for the insane, mental hospital, reception

house, receiving house or similar institution which—

(a) is conducted by the State or is in receipt of a grant for maintenance

from the State; and

(b) is for the time being approved by the Commonwealth for the purposes

of the agreement;

"qualified person" means a patient in a mental institution who was ordinarily resident in Australia at the time of admission to the mental institution, but does not include a patient whose fees are borne by the Commonwealth or by another State.