EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
STATUTORY RULES 1984 NO. 310
ISSUED BY AUTHORITY OF THE MINISTER FOR HEALTH
HEALTH INSURANCE ACT 1973
HEALTH INSURANCE (VARIATION OF FEES AND MEDICAL
SERVICES) (NO. 35) REGULATIONS
Section 133 of the Health Insurance Act 1973 (‘the Act’) provides that the Governor-General may make regulations prescribing all matters required or permitted by the Act to be prescribed, or necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to the Act.
Schedule 1 to the Act contains a table of medical services and rules for the interpretation of the table. The table of medical services contains items which set out the description of each medical service, and the fee for the calculation of medicare benefit applicable in each State in respect of the service.
Section 4 of the Act provides that the table of medical services, items or rules of interpretation in Schedule 1 to the Act may be varied or
replaced by regulations, and that regulations replacing such a table may be amended by regulations. The Health Insurance (Variation of Fees’ and Medical Services) (No. 32) Regulations, as amended by subsequent regulations, prescribe the previous table of medical services in pursuance of section 4 of the Act.
Section 9 of the Act provides that medicare benefit shall be calculated by reference to fees for medical services set out in the table of medical services in Schedule 1 of the Act. Medicare benefit is normally payable, in accordance with section 10 of the Act, at a rate of 85% of the relevant fee specified in the table of medical services. An additional amount of medicare benefit is payable where required to ensure that the difference between the benefit normally payable and the fee specified in the table of medical services does not exceed $10.00 in relation to a single professional service, or an aggregate of $150.00 per patient in a year in relation to multiple professional services.
The Minister for Health agreed to various amendments of the table of medical services affecting
145 new or existing items. These amendments had been recommended by the Schedule Revision Committee, a body comprised of 5 representatives of the Australian Medical Association and 5 Commonwealth officers which advises the Minister for Health. The amendments involve: the introduction of 67 new items; the deletion of 24 existing items; the revision of the description of medical service in 52 items; and the revision of the fee specified for medicare benefit purposes in 2 items.
The statutory rules repeal the regulations which prescribe the previous table of medical services and prescribe a new consolidated table of medical services incorporating the new, as well as earlier, amendments of the table.
The statutory rules came into operation on 1 November 1984.