EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Issued by the Authority of the Minister for Health and Ageing
Health Insurance Act 1973
Health Insurance (Allied Health and Dental Services)
Amendment Determination 2005 (No 2)
Subsection 3C(1) of the Health Insurance Act 1973 (the Act) provides that the Minister may, by writing, determine that a health service not listed in the Medicare Benefits Schedule shall, in specified circumstances and for specified statutory provisions, be treated as if it were so listed.
A determination made under subsection 3C(1) is a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.
Subsection 3C(8) provides that the health services that may be subject to a determination made under subsection 3C(1) include dental services and any other prescribed service that relates to health. Regulation 3A of the Health Insurance Regulations 1975 prescribes 12 classes of allied health services as “health services” for the purposes of section 3C of the Act.
The purpose of this Determination is to amend the Health Insurance (Allied Health and Dental Services) Determination 2005. It streamlines administrative arrangements for the allied health and dental care initiative, introduced on 1 July 2004 under the Australian Government’s Strengthening Medicare package. The amendment changes the method for counting patient eligibility for rebates from five allied health services and three dental care services in a 12 month period (which was taken from the date of first service) to five allied health and three dental care services in a calendar year.
The amendment also adds exercise physiology as another class of health services and sets out the fees and circumstances applying to exercise physiology services. Another Determination,
Health Insurance (Requirements for Allied Health Professionals) Determination 2005, specifies eligibility requirements for eligible allied health professionals. Exercise physiologists are added under this Determination from 1 January 2006.
Details of the Health Insurance (Allied Health and Dental Services) Amendment Determination 2005 (No 2) are set out in the Attachment.
The Determination commences on 1 January 2006.
Consultation
The Department of Health and Ageing consulted with the allied health and dental care initiative’s consultative group about the change in the method of counting patient rebates and gained its agreement. The group supports the change, and includes representatives from the Australian Divisions of General Practice, the Australian Medical Association, the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, the Rural Doctors Association, all national peak bodies representing eligible allied health professional groups, the Australian Dental Association and Medicare Australia. The Australian Association of Exercise and Sports Science were also involved in developing the requirements of the service.
DETAILS OF THE HEALTH INSURANCE (ALLIED HEALTH AND DENTAL SERVICES) AMENDMENT DETERMINATION 2005 (No 2)
Preliminary
Section 1 provides for the Determination to be referred to as the Health Insurance (Allied Health and Dental Services) Amendment Determination 2005 (No 2).
Section 2 provides for the Determination to commence on 1 January 2006.
Section 3 indicates that Schedule 1 amends the Health Insurance (Allied Health and Dental Services) Determination 2005.
Schedule 1 – Amendments
Item 1 adds a definition of exercise physiology services.
Item 2 prescribes the requirements of the service, which are the same as the requirements for the other services prescribed in Health Insurance (Allied Health and Dental Services) Determination 2005.
Item 3 changes the method for counting patient eligibility for rebates from five allied health services and three dental care services in a 12 month period (which was taken from the date of first service) to five allied health and three dental care services in a calendar year.