EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Health Insurance Act 1973
Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Accreditation) Amendment Instrument (No. 2) 2015
Issued by the authority of the Minister for Health
Authority
Subsection 23DZZIAA(1) of the Health Insurance Act 1973 (the Act) provides that the Minister may establish one or more schemes under which diagnostic imaging premises and bases for mobile diagnostic imaging equipment may be accredited for diagnostic imaging procedures. The Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Accreditation Instrument) 2010 (the Principal Instrument) was made pursuant to subsection 23DZZIAA(1).
Purpose
The purpose of the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Accreditation) Amendment Instrument (No. 2) 2015 (the Second Amending Instrument) is to amend the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Accreditation) Amendment Instrument 2015 (the First Amending Instrument) to:
- make a minor change to the new evidence requirements for Standard 3.2 (Optimised Radiation Technique Charts Standard) to be included in the Principal Instrument by the First Amending Instrument; and
- change the date on which the First Amending Instrument will take effect from 1 July 2015 to 1 January 2016.
Background
In June 2007, the Act was amended to establish an accreditation scheme for diagnostic imaging under which it became a prerequisite for the payment of Medicare benefits for diagnostic imaging services that the services be provided at diagnostic imaging premises or a base for mobile diagnostic imaging equipment (an imaging practice) accredited under the scheme. The scheme was initially implemented through the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Services Accreditation) Determination 2008 and is currently implemented through the Principal Instrument.
Under the scheme, the proprietor of an imaging practice may apply to an approved accreditor for accreditation of the imaging practice. Imaging practices are assessed against accreditation standards specified in the Principal Instrument. First time applicants are assessed against a set of entry level standards, with other imaging practices assessed against the full suite of standards. Imaging practices approved under the Medical Imaging Accreditation Program may be granted accreditation on that basis.
The First Amending Instrument was made on 14 April 2015 and was registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments on 29 April 2015. The First Amending Instrument was to amend the Principal Instrument on 1 July 2015 to update a number of the accreditation standards. However, those changes inadvertently omitted an amendment to the evidence requirements of standard 3.2, which relates to Optimised Radiation Technique Charts, that the diagnostic imaging industry was expecting.
The Second Amending Instrument amends the First Amending Instrument so that the evidence requirements for fluoroscopy and angiography equipment under Standard 3.2 to be included in the Principal Instrument by the First Amending Instrument will be those requirements determined through stakeholder consensus. The new evidence requirements for the standard will give more specific guidance about procedures to ensure patient radiation exposure is kept as low as reasonably achievable for fluoroscopy and angiography services.
The Second Amending Instrument also amends the First Amending Instrument to delay its date of commencement from 1 July 2015 to 1 January 2016. This will ensure that diagnostic imaging providers are not disadvantaged by the changes to the First Amending Instrument and have adequate time to prepare for the new requirements.
Consultation
The standards were revised in consultation with key stakeholders, included the Monitoring and Implementation Committee (MIC), the Diagnostic Imaging Advisory Committee (DIAC) and the DIAS accreditors. The MIC members have been appointed for their technical and/or clinical expertise and the DIAC members are stakeholder representatives from a wide range of organisations and bodies in the diagnostic imaging field. Multiple rounds of consultation were undertaken with the consensus view of stakeholders being to refine the existing standards.
The Second Amending Instrument commences on the day after Registration on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.
The instrument is a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003 (Cth).
Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights
Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011
Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Accreditation) Amendment Instrument (No. 2) 2015
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 purpose of the Legislative Instrument is to amend the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Accreditation) Amendment Instrument 2015 (the First Amending Instrument). The First Amending Instrument was registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments on 29 April 2015 and was due to take effect to amend the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Accreditation) Instrument 2010 (the Principal Instrument) on 1 July 2015.
The Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Accreditation) Amendment Instrument (No. 2) 2015:
- makes a minor change to the new evidence requirements for Standard 3.2 (Optimised Radiation Technique Charts Standard) that will be inserted into the Principal Instrument by the First Amending Instrument; and
- changes the date on which the First Amending Instrument will take effect from 1 July 2015 to 1 January 2016.
In June 2007, the Health Insurance Act 1973 was amended to establish an accreditation scheme for diagnostic imaging under which it became a prerequisite for the payment of Medicare benefits for diagnostic imaging services that the services be provided at diagnostic imaging premises or a base for mobile diagnostic imaging equipment (an imaging practice) accredited under the scheme. The scheme was initially implemented through the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Services Accreditation) Determination 2008 and is currently implemented through the Principal Instrument.
Under the scheme, the proprietor of an imaging practice may apply to an approved accreditor for accreditation of the imaging practice. Imaging practices are assessed against accreditation standards specified in the Principal Instrument. First time applicants are assessed against a set of entry level standards, with other imaging practices assessed against the full suite of standards. Imaging practices approved under the Medical Imaging Accreditation Program may be granted accreditation on that basis.
A number of changes to the accreditation standards in the Principal Instrument are to be made by the First Amending Instrument, which was due to commence on 1 July 2015. However, these inadvertently left out an amendment that the diagnostic imaging industry was expecting. This Instrument amends the First Amending Instrument to correct the amendment to the evidence requirements of Standard 3.2, which relates to Optimised Radiation Technique Charts. The change will provide more specific guidance about procedures to ensure patient radiation exposure is kept as low as reasonably achievable for fluoroscopy and angiography services.
In order to ensure that diagnostic imaging providers are not disadvantaged by these changes to the First Amending Instrument and have adequate time to prepare to meet the new requirements, this Instrument also amends the First Amending Instrument to delay its date of commencement from 1 July 2015 to 1 January 2016.
Human rights implications
This Legislative Instrument does not engage any of the applicable rights or freedoms.
It is considered that this Legislative Instrument does not engage any of the applicable rights or freedoms. The amendments do not directly affect an individual’s access to Medicare benefits or other health or social security benefits. The amendments made by this Legislative Instrument simply alter the date of commencement of the First Amending Instrument and correct an inadvertent omission from one of the new standards to be included in the Principal Instrument by the First Amending Instrument. The correction improves the clarity of the evidence required from diagnostic imaging providers for angiography and fluoroscopy equipment.
Conclusion
This Legislative Instrument is compatible with human rights as it does not raise any human rights issues.
SUSSAN LEY
MINISTER FOR HEALTH