Medical Indemnity Agreement (Financial Assistance—Binding Commonwealth Obligations) Act 2002

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Medical Indemnity Agreement (Financial Assistance—Binding Commonwealth Obligations) Act 2002

 

No. 111, 2002

 

 

 

 

 

An Act about binding Commonwealth obligations to provide financial assistance under indemnity agreements relating to Australasian Medical Insurance Limited and United Medical Protection Limited, and for related purposes

 

 

 

Contents

1  Short title.......................................

2  Commencement...................................

3  Definitions......................................

4  Payments under a Medical Indemnity Agreement................

5  Appropriation.....................................

6  Tabling of Ministerial statement about payments................

7  Tabling of Medical Indemnity Agreements etc..................

8  Contents of Medical Indemnity Agreement...................

 

 

Medical Indemnity Agreement (Financial Assistance—Binding Commonwealth Obligations) Act 2002

No. 111, 2002

 

 

 

An Act about binding Commonwealth obligations to provide financial assistance under indemnity agreements relating to Australasian Medical Insurance Limited and United Medical Protection Limited, and for related purposes

[Assented to 2 December 2002]

The Parliament of Australia enacts:

1  Short title

  This Act may be cited as the Medical Indemnity Agreement (Financial Assistance—Binding Commonwealth Obligations) Act 2002.

2  Commencement

  This Act commences on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.

3  Definitions

  In this Act:

insolvency representative, in relation to a company, means any of the following (whether in a representative capacity or a personal capacity):

 (a) a liquidator or provisional liquidator of the company;

 (b) a receiver, or receiver and manager, of property of the company;

 (c) an administrator of the company;

 (d) an administrator of a deed of company arrangement executed by the company;

 (e) a trustee or other person administering a compromise or arrangement made between the company and any other person or persons.

Medical Indemnity Agreement means:

 (a) an agreement, known as an Indemnity Agreement, that is between:

 (i) the Commonwealth; and

 (ii) Australasian Medical Insurance Limited; and

 (iii) United Medical Protection Limited; and

 (iv) an insolvency representative of both of those companies; or

 (b) if the agreement has been amended—the agreement as amended.

4  Payments under a Medical Indemnity Agreement

Australasian Medical Insurance Limited

 (1) The Commonwealth must pay to Australasian Medical Insurance Limited the amounts (if any) required to be paid to it by the Commonwealth under a Medical Indemnity Agreement.

 (2) The Commonwealth must pay to an insolvency representative of Australasian Medical Insurance Limited the amounts (if any) required to be paid to the insolvency representative by the Commonwealth under a Medical Indemnity Agreement.

United Medical Protection Limited

 (3) The Commonwealth must pay to United Medical Protection Limited the amounts (if any) required to be paid to it by the Commonwealth under a Medical Indemnity Agreement.

 (4) The Commonwealth must pay to an insolvency representative of United Medical Protection Limited the amounts (if any) required to be paid to the insolvency representative by the Commonwealth under a Medical Indemnity Agreement.

Other payments

 (5) The Commonwealth must pay to a person other than:

 (a) Australasian Medical Insurance Limited; or

 (b) an insolvency representative of Australasian Medical Insurance Limited; or

 (c) United Medical Protection Limited; or

 (d) an insolvency representative of United Medical Protection Limited;

the amounts (if any) required to be paid to the person by the Commonwealth under a Medical Indemnity Agreement.

5  Appropriation

  The Consolidated Revenue Fund is appropriated for the purposes of section 4.

6  Tabling of Ministerial statement about payments

 (1) This section applies if, during a particular financial year, one or more payments are made by the Commonwealth to:

 (a) Australasian Medical Insurance Limited; or

 (b) an insolvency representative of Australasian Medical Insurance Limited; or

 (c) United Medical Protection Limited; or

 (d) an insolvency representative of United Medical Protection Limited; or

 (e) any other person;

under a Medical Indemnity Agreement.

 (2) As soon as practicable after the end of the financial year, the Minister must cause to be prepared a statement about the payments.

 (3) The Minister must cause a copy of the statement to be tabled in each House of the Parliament within 15 sitting days of that House after the completion of the preparation of the report.

7  Tabling of Medical Indemnity Agreements etc.

Medical Indemnity Agreements

 (1) The Minister must cause a copy of a Medical Indemnity Agreement to be tabled in each House of the Parliament within 15 sitting days of that House after:

 (a) the commencement of this section; or

 (b) the agreement is entered into;

whichever is later.

Amending agreements

 (2) The Minister must cause a copy of an agreement that amends a Medical Indemnity Agreement to be tabled in each House of the Parliament within 15 sitting days of that House after:

 (a) the commencement of this section; or

 (b) the amending agreement is entered into;

whichever is later.

8  Contents of Medical Indemnity Agreement

  To avoid doubt, this Act does not, by implication, prevent a Medical Indemnity Agreement from containing provisions relating to matters other than indemnities.

(139/02)


 

 

[Minister’s second reading speech made in—

House of Representatives on 26 June 2002

Senate on 21 October 2002]

 

Overview

The Medical Indemnity Agreement (Financial Assistance—Binding Commonwealth Obligations) Act 2002 was enacted by the Parliament of Australia to establish binding Commonwealth obligations to provide financial assistance under indemnity agreements related to Australasian Medical Insurance Limited and United Medical Protection Limited. The primary purpose of this Act is to ensure the Commonwealth meets its financial commitments under these agreements, which are critical for the financial stability and operational continuity of these medical insurance companies. The Act mandates the Commonwealth to make payments to these companies and their insolvency representatives, as stipulated by the agreements, and ensures transparency and accountability through the tabling of relevant agreements and payment statements in Parliament. The policy objective is to maintain the integrity of the medical indemnity agreements and to protect the interests of all parties involved.

Scope and Application

The Medical Indemnity Agreement (Financial Assistance—Binding Commonwealth Obligations) Act 2002 applies to the Commonwealth's obligations under specific indemnity agreements with Australasian Medical Insurance Limited and United Medical Protection Limited. The Act mandates the Commonwealth to make payments to these entities or their insolvency representatives as stipulated in the agreements, encompassing payments to any other person as per the agreement. The Act extends its application across the Commonwealth jurisdiction. It includes provisions for appropriation of funds from the Consolidated Revenue Fund to meet these obligations, and requires the Minister to prepare and table statements on payments and agreements in Parliament within specific timeframes. The Act explicitly states that its provisions do not restrict the inclusion of other matters in the Medical Indemnity Agreements. The Act's scope and obligations may be further defined or extended through subordinate instruments, although the primary text does not specify these in detail.

Key Provisions

The Medical Indemnity Agreement (Financial Assistance—Binding Commonwealth Obligations) Act 2002 (sections 4 and 8) establishes binding Commonwealth obligations to provide financial assistance under indemnity agreements with Australasian Medical Insurance Limited and United Medical Protection Limited. Specifically, the Commonwealth is required to make payments to these entities and their insolvency representatives as stipulated in the agreements. These payments must be made to the entities themselves or to their insolvency representatives if either entity becomes insolvent. The Act also allows for payments to be made to other individuals or entities specified under the agreements. The Act mandates that these payments be appropriated from the Consolidated Revenue Fund (section 5), and it requires the Minister to prepare and table a statement in Parliament about any payments made during a financial year (section 6). Additionally, the Minister must ensure that copies of any Medical Indemnity Agreements or amending agreements are tabled in Parliament within 15 sitting days after their entry into force or the commencement of the Act (section 7). The Act clarifies that a Medical Indemnity Agreement may include provisions beyond indemnities (section 8). The Act imposes several obligations on the Commonwealth, primarily concerning the payment of specified amounts under the Medical Indemnity Agreements to Australasian Medical Insurance Limited, United Medical Protection Limited, their insolvency representatives, or other designated individuals or entities. The Commonwealth must ensure that these payments are made in accordance with the terms of the agreements. Furthermore, the Minister is required to prepare and table a statement detailing these payments at the end of each financial year. The Minister must also ensure that copies of any Medical Indemnity Agreements or agreements that amend them are tabled in Parliament within 15 sitting days after their execution or the commencement of the Act. These obligations are designed to ensure transparency and accountability in the administration of the financial assistance provided under the agreements. The Act does not explicitly outline specific offences or penalties for non-compliance with its provisions. However, failure to meet the obligations, such as not making required payments or not tabling the requisite documents in Parliament, could potentially lead to parliamentary scrutiny and political consequences for the Minister and the government. While the Act does not detail maximum penalties, breaches of parliamentary requirements can attract significant political and public scrutiny, which may have broader implications for those responsible.

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Medical Law
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Payments under a Medical Indemnity Agreement
Tabling of Medical Indemnity Agreements etc.
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Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation at 26 August 2026. For the latest information on Australian Government law please go to https://www.legislation.gov.au.