EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Issued by the Authority of the Minister for Health
Private Health Insurance Act 2007
Private Health Insurance (Data Provision) Rules 2017
Section 333-20 of the Private Health Insurance Act 2007 (the Act) provides that the Minister may make Private Health Insurance (Data Provision) Rules 2017 providing for matters required or permitted by Part 4-5 of the Act, or necessary or convenient in order to carry out or give effect to Part 4-5 of the Act.
The Private Health Insurance (Data Provision) Rules 2017 (the Rules) revoke and remake the previous Private Health Insurance (Data Provision) Rules 2016 (No. 1).
The Rules specify the information, relating to the treatment of insured persons, that private health insurers must give to the Secretary of the Department of Health (the Department) under section 172-10 of the Act.
The information required by the Rules is specified in the following documents, which were approved by the Assistant Secretary of the Health System Financing Branch of the Department on the dates indicated:
- GT-Dental Data from Insurers to the Department, approved 25 April 2015; and
- HCP2 Data from Insurers to the Department, approved 25 April 2015.
Also included is the following document which was approved by the Assistant Secretary of the Health Analytics Branch of the Department on the date indicated:
- HCP1 Data from Insurers to the Department, approved 30 March 2017.
These documents can be found on the Department’s website via the following link to the Hospital Casemix Protocol (HCP).
Consultation
The Department has consulted with the private health insurance and private hospital industry through existing working group arrangements. The working groups are comprised of Department and industry stakeholder representatives. Private health insurance and private hospital stakeholder representatives interested in developing the amendments participated in the process. Industry is of the view that it is appropriate for amendments to be managed by this Working Group. Previous amendments to the data specifications have been managed in this way. The amended data specifications are distributed to industry via a Private Health Insurance Circular.
The Act does not specify any conditions that need to be met before the power to make the Rules may be exercised.
The Rules are a Legislative Instrument for the purposes of the Legislation Act 2003.
The Rules commence on 1 July 2017.
Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights
Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011
Private Health Insurance (Data Provision) Rules 2017
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 Private Health Insurance (Data Provision) Rules 2017 (the Rules) specify the information, relating to the treatment of insured persons, that private health insurers must give to the Secretary of the Department of Health (the Department) under section 172-10 of the Private Health Insurance Act 2007 (the Act).
The Rules revoke and replace the Private Health Insurance (Data Provision) Rules 2016 (No.1).
The Rules specify the information, relating to the treatment of insured persons, that private health insurers must give to the Secretary of the Department of Health (the Department) under section 172-10 of the Act.
The information required by the Rules is specified in the following documents, which were approved by the Assistant Secretary of the Health System Financing Branch of the Department on the dates indicated:
- GT-Dental Data from Insurers to the Department, approved 25 April 2015; and
- HCP2 Data from Insurers to the Department, approved 25 April 2015.
Also included is the following document which was approved by the Assistant Secretary of the Health Analytics Branch of the Department on the date indicated:
- HCP1 Data from Insurers to the Department, approved 30 March 2017.
These documents can be found on the Department’s website via the following link to the Hospital Casemix Protocol (HCP).
The information which, under these Rules, private health insurers must give to the Secretary does not include personal information about patients (i.e. information from which individual patients could be identified).
Human rights implications
This Legislative Instrument will engage the human right of privacy but will not result in any limitation of that right.
Supply of the GT-Dental Data, HCP1 Data and HCP2 Data involves private health insurers disclosing to the Department de-identified information about the treatment of insured patients. The Department would not be able to readily use this de-identified information to identify an individual patient. Further, section 323-1 of the Act creates an offence for a person to disclose protected information to another person that the first person obtains in the course of performing a duty, function or power under the Act, unless the disclosure is an authorised disclosure. The effect of this provision is to limit the way in which the Department deals with information about individuals.
The revisions to the documents are essentially mechanical in nature, and do not substantively alter any legislative requirements.
Conclusion
This Legislative Instrument is compatible with human rights as, although it engages the right of privacy in relation to personal information, it will not derogate from that right.
Ian Crettenden
Assistant Secretary
Health Analytics Branch
Department of Health