EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

Issued by the Authority of the Minister for Health and Ageing

Health Insurance Act 1973

Health Insurance (Gippsland and South Eastern New South Wales Mobile MRI Service) Amendment Determination 2011

Subsection 3C(1) of the Health Insurance Act 1973 (the Act) provides, in part, that the Minister may determine in writing that a health service not listed in the Diagnostic Imaging Services Table (the Table) shall, in specified circumstances and for specified statutory provisions, be treated as if it were so listed.  The Table is set out in the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Services Table) Regulations 2010 which are remade each year.  

A determination made under subsection 3C(1) of the Act is a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003 (see subsection 3C(4) of the Act and paragraph 6(d) of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003).

The purpose of this amending determination is to amend the Health Insurance (Gippsland and South Eastern New South Wales Mobile MRI Service) Determination 2009) (the Determination) to enable the continued provision of services under the Determination after 30 June 2011.  It also makes minor technical amendments to legislative references within the Determination. 

The Determination enables patients in Gippsland and South Eastern NSW to have access to Medicare-eligible MRI services provided by Regional Imaging Pty Limited (RIL) pursuant to a funding agreement between RIL and the Department of Health and Ageing (the Department).  Both the Determination and the funding agreement cease on 30 June 2011.  

The Health Insurance (Gippsland and South Eastern New South Wales Mobile MRI Service) Amendment Determination 2011 (the Amending Determination) amends the Determination by extending the cessation date from 30 June 2011 to 31 December 2011, enabling the continued provision of Medicare-eligible MRI services in Gippsland and South Eastern NSW by RIL while a new funding agreement is being negotiated. 

The Amending Determination commences on the day after registration on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments and ceases to have effect at the end of 31 December 2011.

Details of the Amending Determination are set out in the Attachment.

Consultation

The Department of Health and Ageing has consulted with RIL about the extension to the operation of the Determination.  No consultation was undertaken in the making of the Amending Determination as the instrument is machinery in nature and does not substantially alter existing arrangements.

DIAGNOSTIC SERVICES BRANCH

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND AGEING

JUNE 2011

ATTACHMENT

DETAILS OF THE HEALTH INSURANCE (GIPPSLAND AND SOUTH EASTERN NEW SOUTH WALES MOBILE MRI SERVICE) AMENDMENT DETERMINATION 2011

Section 1  Name of Determination

This section provides that the name of the Amending Determination is the Health Insurance (Gippsland and South Eastern New South Wales Mobile MRI Service) Amending Determination 2011.

Section 2  Commencement

This section provides that the Amending Determination commences on the day after registration on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments. 

Section 3 Amendment of the Health Insurance (Gippsland and South Eastern New South Wales Mobile MRI Service) Determination 2009

This section provides that the Schedule of the Amending Determination amends the Determination.

Schedule  Amendments

Item 1 Section 3, Cessation

This item deletes the previous date of cessation and inserts a new date of cessation of 11:59 p.m. 31 December 2011.

Item 2 Subsection 4(1), Interpretation

This item inserts a new definition of ‘eligible equipment’.  Eligible equipment is the General Electric HD MRI unit with a magnet strength of 1.5 Tesla and serial number R4146, operated by RIL.  This is the same equipment on which RIL provided services under the funding agreement.

Item 3 Subsection 4(1), Interpretation

This item inserts a new definition of ‘eligible location’.  Eligible locations are Bega Hospital in NSW and Bairnsdale Hospital, Sale Hospital and LaTrobe Regional Hospital in Victoria.  RIL provided services at these locations under the funding agreement.

Item 4 Subsection 4(1), Interpretation, definition of funding agreement

The Determination currently provides at paragraph 5(1)(b) that it only applies to services provided pursuant to a funding agreement between the Department and RIL.  As there will be no funding agreement in place from 1 July 2011, current paragraph 5(1)(b) is being deleted and replaced with a new paragraph that does not refer to the funding agreement (see item 5 below).  The definition of ‘funding agreement’ is therefore redundant and is deleted.

Item 5 Subsection 4(1), Interpretation, definition of transition period

The Determination also currently provides at paragraph 5(1)(b) that it only applies to services provided during the ‘transition period’, which is defined to mean a period ending on 30 June 2011.  Paragraph 5(1)(b) is being replace with a new paragraph that does not refer to the ‘transition period’ (see item 5 below).  The definition of ‘transition period’ is therefore redundant and is deleted.

Item 6 Paragraph 4(2)(d), Interpretation

This item replaces the reference to the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Services Table) Regulations 2009 with reference to the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Services Table) Regulations 2010, which commenced on 1 November 2010.

Item 7 Subsection 5(1), Circumstances where this Determination applies

Paragraph 5(1)(b) currently provides that the Determination only applies to services provided pursuant to a funding agreement between the Department and RIL and in the transition period (being a period ending on 30 June 2011).  As there will be no funding agreement in place from 1 July 2011, this paragraph is replaced with a new paragraph 5(1)(b) that requires services to be provided on ‘eligible equipment’ and at an ‘eligible location’ (see items 2 and 3 above).  This amendment ensures that RIL can continue to provide Medicare-eligible MRI services in the Gippsland and South East NSW area after 30 June 2011.

Items 8- 12

These items are minor technical amendments to:

• replace references to the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Services Table) Regulations 2009 with reference to the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Services Table) Regulations 2010; and
• reflect the redrafting of the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Services Table) Regulations 2010 that replaced ‘rules’ with ‘clauses’

Item 8 replaces reference to rule 37 in the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Services Table) Regulations 2009 with reference to clause 2.5.7 in the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Services Table) Regulations 2010.

Item 9 replaces reference to rule 39 in the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Services Table) Regulations 2009 with reference to subclause 2.5.9(2) in the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Services Table) Regulations 2010.

Item 10 replaces reference to rule 40 in the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Services Table) Regulations 2009 with reference to clause 2.5.10 in the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Services Table) Regulations 2010.

Item 11 replaces reference to Part 3 of Schedule 1 in the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Services Table) Regulations 2009 with reference to Part 1 of Schedule 1 in the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Services Table) Regulations 2010.

Item 12 replaces reference to rule 41 in the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Services Table) Regulations 2009 with reference to clause 2.5.11 in the Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Services Table) Regulations 2010.