Health Insurance (Medicare Benefits Payable in Respect of Professional Services – Radiation Oncology and Nuclear Medicine) Direction 2026

Health Insurance (Medicare Benefits Payable in Respect of Professional Services – Radiation Oncology and Nuclear Medicine) Direction 2026

I, Nigel Murray, delegate for the Minister for Health and Ageing, make the following Notifiable Instrument.

Dated 20 March 2026   

Nigel Murray

Assistant Secretary
MBS Policy and Specialist Services Branch
Medicare Benefits and Digital Health Division
Health Resourcing Group

Department of Health, Disability and Ageing

Contents

1  Name...................................................1

2  Commencement............................................1

3  Authority................................................1

4  Repeals.................................................1

5  Definitions...............................................1

6  Medicare benefits payable in respect of radiation oncology services..............2

Schedule 1—Eligible Public-Private Partnership organisations 3

Schedule 2—Relevant services 6

1  Name

  This instrument is the Health Insurance (Medicare Benefits Payable in Respect of Professional Services – Radiation Oncology and Nuclear Medicine) Direction 2026.

2  Commencement

1.     Each provision of this instrument specified in column 1 of the table commences, or is taken to have commenced, in accordance with column 2 of the table. Any other statement in column 2 has effect according to its terms.

Note:  This table relates only to the provisions of this instrument as originally made. It will not be amended to deal with any later amendments of this instrument.

1.     Any information in column 3 of the table is not part of this instrument. Information may be inserted in this column, or information in it may be edited, in any published version of this instrument.

3  Authority

  This instrument is made under subsection 19(2) of the Health Insurance Act 1973.

4  Repeals

  This instrument is repealed on 20 March 2027 at 11:59pm, unless repealed earlier.

5  Definitions

  In this instrument:

consultant physician has the meaning given by subsection 3(1) of the HI Act.

eligible person has the meaning given by subsection 3(1) of the HI Act.

eligible public-private partnership agreement means a radiation oncology arrangement between a State and an organisation that is eligible to provide relevant Medicare Benefits Schedule services.

general medical services table means the table prescribed under section 4 of the HI Act.

HI Act means the Health Insurance Act 1973.

medical practitioner has the meaning given by subsection 3(1) of the HI Act.

Medicare benefit has the meaning given by subsection 3(1) of the HI Act.

professional service has the meaning given by subsection 3(1) of the HI Act.

radiation oncologist has the meaning given by clause 5.3.2 of the general medical services table.

specialist has the meaning given by subsection 3(1) of the HI Act. 

6  Medicare benefits payable in respect of radiation oncology and nuclear medicine services

A Medicare benefit shall be payable in respect of a professional service where the following conditions are met.

The professional service:

1.     is provided to an eligible person;
2.     is provided by:
   1.             a radiation oncologist; or
   2.             a specialist or consultant physician, in the practice of the specialist’s or consultant physician’s specialty of nuclear medicine;

at an organisation subject to an eligible public-private partnership agreement specified in Schedule 1 of this Direction;

1.     corresponds with a Medicare Benefits Schedule item specified in Schedule 2 of this Direction.

Schedule 1—Eligible Public-Private Partnership organisations

1.1  Eligible Public-Private Partnership organisations 

The below table lists organisations as per an eligible Public-Private Partnership agreement executed by 17 December 2025. 

Schedule 2—Relevant services

2.1  Relevant services

The below table lists relevant services.

Note: The tabulated Medicare Benefits Schedule items are provided for in the general medical services table.