EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988
Section 34E
Notice of a Disallowable Instrument
Variation of Operational Standards for Rehabilitation Program Providers (Workplace Rehabilitation Providers)
The purpose of the Instrument to which this Explanatory Statement relates is to vary the operational standards applying to rehabilitation program providers (Operational Standards) by revoking the current Operational Standards and substituting new Operational Standards to apply on and from 1 July 2010.
Section 37 of the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988 (the SRC Act) provides that a rehabilitation authority (employer) can provide a rehabilitation program to an employee itself or arrange for it to be provided by a rehabilitation program provider that has been approved by Comcare. Section 34E of the SRC Act authorises Comcare to determine operational standards that approved rehabilitation program providers must comply with.
The new Operational Standards, together with the new Criteria for Approval or Renewal of Approval as a Rehabilitation Program Provider determined under section 34D of the SRC Act and new application forms approved under section 34S of the SRC Act, have been developed in consultation with:
employers to whom the SRC Act applies;
employee representatives;
rehabilitation program providers;
the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Commission;
the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Commission; and
the Heads of Workers Compensation Authorities (HWCA)
and implement the nationally consistent provider approval framework developed by HWCA with additional Comcare developed requirements to maintain the integrity and quality of the existing Comcare approval regime.
Applications to Comcare for approval or renewal of approval must be made on the new approved forms and will be assessed against the new Approval Criteria and Operational Standards.