Health Insurance Act 1973 - Declaration of Quality Assurance Activity under section 124X (QAA No. 3/2004)

Administered by Department of Health, Disability and Ageing

Legislation au F2005L00020 Not in force Legislative Instrument

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EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

ISSUED BY THE AUTHORITY OF

THE MINISTER FOR HEALTH AND AGEING

HEALTH INSURANCE ACT 1973

DECLARATION OF QUALITY ASSURANCE ACTIVITIES UNDER SECTION 124X

QAA No.  3/2004

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 that are funded by the government, for example, through Medicare benefits.  The scheme encourages participation in such activities by protecting certain information from disclosure, and also by protecting the persons engaged in those activities, in good faith, from civil liability in respect of those activities.  In order for Part VC to apply to an activity, the Minister must make a Declaration.

 

This Declaration applies Part VC of the Act to Australian General Practice Accreditation Limited (AGPAL) – accreditation of general practices (Item 1), Quality Practice Accreditation Proprietary Limited (QPA) – accreditation of general practices (Item 2), and Quality Improvement Practice Proprietary Limited (QIP) – accreditation of optometric practices (Item 3) – (the Activities).

 

The Declaration is a disallowable instrument for the purposes of section 46A of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901.

 

The Activities relate to the quality of health services which would be eligible for payment in respect of Medicare Benefits.  

 

Both the Activities at Item 1 and Item 2 of the Schedule have the purpose of assessing and accrediting general practices to the standards established by the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners.  The Activity at Item 3 of the Schedule has the purpose of assessing and accrediting general practices to the standards established by the Optometrists Association of Australia.

 

Before the Minister can make a declaration, certain requirements must be met.

 

Firstly, the organisations engaged in the activities must be authorised to do so.  The authorisation can be by a law of the Commonwealth, or a State or Territory; by an association of health professionals; by a body that provides health care; or by an educational institution.  The organisations engaged in the Activity at Item 1 and Item 2 of the Schedule are authorised to do so by the Commonwealth government.

 

The organisation engaged in the Activity at Item 3 of the Schedule is authorised to do so by the Optometrists Association Australia.

 

Secondly, the Minister has to be satisfied that it is in the public interest to have Part VC of the Act apply to the Activities.  The Minister must have regard to criteria prescribed by the regulations.  The criteria relevant to the Activities are in regulations 23C, 23D and 23E or 23F of the Health Insurance Regulations.  The Activities meet those criteria as follows:

 

· As required by Regulation 23C, the Activities include the disclosure of non-identifying information that concerns the quality of service assessed, evaluated or studied or the factors affecting the quality of the service, thereby satisfying the requirement that information is provided at times and in a manner acceptable to the Minister.  In the Activity under Item 1 of the Schedule, non-identifying information will be made available through AGPAL’s bi-annual conference and through its publication “Quality News”, which is published on a quarterly basis.  Copies of the publications will be available to the Minister for Health and Ageing. 

 

 In the Activity under Item 2 of the Schedule, aggregated findings will be regularly reported to practices, professional organisations and the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing.  Copies of reports will be available to the Minister for Health and Ageing. 

 

 In the Activity under Item 3 of the Schedule, the organisation engaged in the Activity will publish research based on de-identified data and provide copies of the research papers to the Minister for Health and Ageing.

 

· The Activities under Items 1, 2 and 3 are exempt from Regulation 23D as they are being undertaken in more than one state.

 

· As required by Regulation 23E, the Minister is satisfied that the Activity under Item 3 of the Schedule is of a kind that have not been engaged in Australia before because none has been declared and the necessary protections for those participating were not available.  The Declaration is needed to ensure that the Activity has the protections of immunity from suit and prohibitions on the disclosure of information.  These are to make the Activity effective, by encouraging the full participation in the Activity of persons who provide health services. 

 

· As required by Regulation 23F, the Minister is satisfied that the Activities under Items 1 and 2 are of a kind that have been engaged in Australia before.  In respect of Item 1, this activity has been previously declared (QAA No. 1/1999).  In respect of Item 2, two previous declarations have been made in relation to this kind of activity, including a declaration covering AGPAL’s practice accreditation activity (referred to above).  The quality assurance activity to be undertaken by QPA is the same kind of activity as that undertaken by AGPAL.  The application of Part VC of the Act to the activities described in Item 1 and 2 is necessary to make the activity effective by encouraging participation in the activity by persons who provide health services, to a greater extent than the participation in the activity, by persons who provide health services, in previous activity. 

 

A Regulation Impact Statement (RIS) is not necessary for this Declaration because the declaration of the activity will not have a direct or substantial indirect effect on business.

 

The Declaration was signed by the Minister on 22 December 2004 and comes into operation on the day after registration on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.  As provided by subsection 124X (4) a declaration ceases to be in force at the end of 5 years after the instrument of declaration is signed, unless revoked earlier.

 

QAA No. 3/2004

Overview

The Health Insurance Act 1973 was enacted to provide for the establishment of a national health insurance scheme in Australia. The Act was introduced to address the need for a comprehensive health insurance system that ensures access to medical services for all Australians. The legislation was enacted by the Parliament of Australia and the policy objective is to establish a scheme that provides for the payment of benefits for medical services, thereby ensuring that healthcare remains accessible and affordable. Part VC of the Act was introduced to create a scheme that encourages efficient quality assurance activities by protecting certain information from disclosure and shielding participants from civil liability. The scheme aims to ensure the quality of health services funded by the government, such as those provided through Medicare. To implement Part VC, the Minister for Health and Ageing must make a Declaration that applies the scheme to specific quality assurance activities. The Declaration signed on 22 December 2004 applies Part VC to accreditation activities conducted by Australian General Practice Accreditation Limited, Quality Practice Accreditation Proprietary Limited, and Quality Improvement Practice Proprietary Limited. This protection is intended to encourage greater participation in these activities by health service providers, ultimately enhancing the quality of healthcare services available to the public.

Scope and Application

The explanatory statement for the Declaration of Quality Assurance Activities under Section 124XA No. 3/2004 outlines the application of Part VC of the Health Insurance Act 1973, which aims to promote efficient quality assurance activities in the health sector. The declaration applies to Australian General Practice Accreditation Limited (AGPAL) and Quality Practice Accreditation Proprietary Limited (QPA), both involved in the accreditation of general practices, as well as Quality Improvement Practice Proprietary Limited (QIP), which accredits optometric practices. These activities are intended to ensure the quality of health services that could be eligible for government funding, such as through Medicare benefits. The scheme provides protections, such as the exclusion of certain information from disclosure and immunity from civil liability, to encourage participation in these quality assurance activities. The Minister for Health and Ageing must ensure the organisations are authorised and that the application of the Act is in the public interest, considering specified criteria. The declaration, which is a disallowable instrument, was signed on 22 December 2004 and will be in force for five years unless revoked earlier.

Key Provisions

The main operative sections of this Declaration, under section 124X of the Health Insurance Act 1973 (the Act), apply Part VC of the Act to specific quality assurance activities undertaken by Australian General Practice Accreditation Limited (AGPAL), Quality Practice Accreditation Proprietary Limited (QPA), and Quality Improvement Practice Proprietary Limited (QIP). These sections (Items 1, 2, and 3 of the Schedule) pertain to the accreditation of general practices and optometric practices, respectively. By applying Part VC, the Declaration ensures these activities are protected from certain legal liabilities and information disclosure requirements, thus encouraging participation and improving the quality of health services funded by the government. The Act imposes several obligations on the parties it governs, including the requirement that the organisations involved must be authorised to conduct their activities either by Commonwealth, State or Territory law, or by relevant professional associations, healthcare providers, or educational institutions. For AGPAL and QPA, authorisation comes from the Commonwealth government, while QIP is authorised by the Optometrists Association of Australia. Additionally, the Minister must be satisfied that applying Part VC to these activities is in the public interest, considering specific criteria such as the provision of non-identifying information about service quality and the nature of the activities themselves. Failure to comply with the obligations set out in the Act may result in civil or criminal consequences. While the Declaration itself does not explicitly state penalties, the Act generally provides for various offences and penalties for breaches of its provisions. Such penalties can include fines and, in more serious cases, imprisonment. The specific penalties would depend on the nature and severity of the breach. Under the Act, the Minister has the authority to make a declaration that applies Part VC to specific quality assurance activities. This Declaration, once made, protects participating organisations from civil liability in respect of their activities and shields certain information from disclosure. It also includes provisions for the declaration to cease after five years unless revoked earlier, providing a time-limited protection framework.

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Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation at 26 August 2026. For the latest information on Australian Government law please go to https://www.legislation.gov.au.