EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
ISSUED BY THE AUTHORITY OF THE MINISTER FOR HEALTH
HEALTH INSURANCE ACT 1973
DECLARATION OF QUALITY ASSURANCE ACTIVITY UNDER SECTION 124X OF THE HEALTH INSURANCE ACT 1973 - QAA 2/2017
Part VC of the Health Insurance Act 1973 (the Act) creates a scheme to encourage efficient quality assurance activities. Those activities help to ensure the quality of health services funded by the Government, including through Medicare benefits, the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, and/or Health Program Grants. The scheme encourages participation in such activities by protecting certain information from disclosure, and also by providing some protection from civil liability to certain persons engaged in those activities in good faith, in respect of those activities.
In order for Part VC to apply to an activity, the Minister must make a declaration pursuant to section 124X of the Act that the activity is a quality assurance activity to which Part VC applies.
The Declaration of Quality Assurance Activity under section 124X of the Health Insurance Act 1973 – QAA 2/2017 (the Declaration) has effect from the day after registration on the Federal Register of Legislation.
The Declaration applies Part VC of the Act to the following activity:
- Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RANZCOG): Perinatal Mortality and Morbidity Audits: learning from adverse events to improve care.
An overview of the activity is contained in Attachment A.
Before making a declaration under section 124X, the Minister must be satisfied the persons engaging in the activity are authorised to do so in one of the ways set out in paragraph 124X(3)(a) of the Act. The persons engaged in the activity are authorised to do so by the
RANZCOG, which is an association of health professionals (see subparagraph 124X(3)(a)(vi)).
Paragraph 124X (3)(b) of the Act provides that the Minister must also be satisfied that it is in the public interest that Part VC of the Act apply to the activity. In doing so, the Minister must have regard to criteria prescribed by regulation. The criteria are set out in regulations 23C to 23G of the Health Insurance Regulations 1975.
The activity meets the criteria as follows:
- As required by regulation 23C, the activity includes the disclosure of non-identifying information that concerns the quality of the service assessed, evaluated or studied. The RANZCOG develops reports based on the outcomes of audits associated with perinatal mortality or morbidity. The reports will include areas of vulnerability, opportunities for improvement and positive findings from audits.
- Regulation 23D does not apply as the activity will be undertaken in more than one State or Territory.
- Regulation 23E does not apply as the activity has been engaged in previously in Australia.
- Regulation 23F applies as the activity has been carried out in Australia. The Minister’s declaration will encourage greater participation in the activity by persons who provide health services by providing participants with a greater degree of confidence and security that their participation is solely to the benefit of establishing and improving quality assurance.
- Regulation 23G does not apply as the activity will not include the assessment or evaluation by a person of the services, skill or performance of a health practitioner for the purpose of determining the health care practitioner’s clinical practising rights.
CONSULTATION
The activity was previously declared a quality assurance activity under section 124X of the Act in 2004 and again in 2009. The RANZCOG applied to continue the declaration of the activity as a quality assurance activity to which Part VC applies.
Assessment of the application included the potential value of declaring the activity as a quality assurance activity for the purposes of the Act, the methodology used to conduct the activity, and whether the application meets the criteria required for declaration as set out in the Regulations.
The RANZCOG was consulted in relation to the final design and content of the declaration. Wider consultation was not considered necessary as the quality assurance activity only relates to the RANZCOG’s activity. The declaration of this activity will not result in any direct or substantial indirect effect on business.
The Declaration comes into operation on the day after registration on the Federal Register of Legislation.
Subsection 124X(4) of the Act provides that, unless sooner revoked, a declaration ceases to be in force at the end of 5 years after it was signed. Accordingly, the Declaration provides that it is repealed at the end of 5 years after it is signed.
The Declaration is a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislation Act 2003.
ATTACHMENT A
OVERVIEW OF THE ACTIVITY
- PURPOSE OF ACTIVITY
The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RANZCOG) works with rural obstetric, gynaecological, paediatric specialists and their units to improve their clinical and organisational practices relating to perinatal deaths or severe adverse events. The Perinatal Mortality and Morbidity Audits: learning from adverse events to improve care activity provides a consistent approach to perinatal audits through the collection of agreed performance indicator data, record review and result discussions.
The audits and self-reflection are required as part of the RANZCOG’s continuing professional development program. The perinatal deaths or adverse event audits support improvements in auditing, investigation and peer review skills for rural specialists. The information collected from the activity will support the continual improvement of clinical and organisational practices for rural specialists, and support benchmarking outcomes with other rural specialists. Outcomes of the activity will be published in RANZCOG quality health care journals.
The RANZCOG Steering Committee will evaluate the outcomes of the activity and disseminate outcomes of the activity to Fellows of RANZCOG.
The objectives of the activity are to:
- Perform perinatal mortality and morbidity audits to help maternal care teams audit and review actions and activities leading up to the perinatal death/s or morbidities.
- Provide clinical management feedback on potential improvements, and develop an action plan in consultation with rural specialists. Specialists acting as audit facilitators will provide guidance and constructive feedback to participants on how they can improve practice and help the clinicians to develop an action plan at a local level.
Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights
Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011
Declaration of Quality Assurance Activity under section 124X of the
Health Insurance Act 1973 - QAA 2/2017
This Legislative Instrument is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the
Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.
Overview of the Legislative Instrument
The Declaration of Quality Assurance Activity under section 124X of the Health Insurance Act 1973 – QAA 2/2017 (the Declaration) declares the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists: Perinatal Mortality and Morbidity Audits: learning from adverse events to improve care activity to be a quality assurance activity to which Part VC of the Health Insurance Act 1973 (the Act) applies. Information known solely as the result of the activity, or documents created solely for the purposes of the activity, will be covered by qualified privilege.
Human rights implications
This Declaration engages the right to health as set out in Article 12 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Right by assisting with the progressive realisation by all appropriate means of the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health.
The Qualified Privilege Scheme established by Part VC of the Act encourages participation in quality assurance activities that help ensure the highest possible health care standards are maintained. The quality assurance activity described in this Declaration will provide participants with a greater degree of confidence and security that their participation is solely for the benefit of establishing and improving outcomes of community health care.
Conclusion
This Declaration is compatible with human rights as it promotes the right to health.