Veterans' Entitlements (Transition Care/Community Care at Home Package - Co Payment for Ex POW/Victoria Cross Recipients) Eligibility Determination 2011

Administered by Department of Veterans' Affairs

Legislation au F2011L00450 Not in force Legislative Instrument

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EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

 

Veterans’ Entitlements (Transition Care/Community Care at Home Package – Co Payment for Ex POW/Victoria Cross Recipients) Eligibility Determination 2011

 

EMPOWERING PROVISION

 

Paragraph 88A(1)(a) of the Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986 (the Act).

 

PURPOSE

 

The attached legislative instrument (R3/2011) specifies:

 

  • a class of entitled persons (certain veterans); and
  • the treatment a person within that class is eligible to receive.

 

The class is:

 

  • a veteran who is a former prisoner of war or the recipient of the Victoria Cross.

 

The treatment is:

 

  • community aged care package;
  • extended aged care at home package;
  • transition care;

 

and is provided under the Treatment Principles made under section 90 of the Act.

 

The attached Determination does two things. 

 

  • It confers eligibility for all of the relevant treatment on a person who might not otherwise be eligible for all of the treatment because the person is only eligible for treatment of a specific condition (s) whereas the relevant treatment tends to be applied as whole-of-person treatment.

 

  • It confers eligibility for the relevant treatment on a person who is otherwise only eligible for treatment of an injury or disease.  The person is then eligible for the treatment even though it is not necessarily being applied to an injury or disease but to the effects of frailty or to the person’s recuperative needs.

 

Normally under the Act a person is eligible for treatment for a particular service-condition (called the holder of a White Card) or is eligible for treatment of any condition (called the holder of a Gold Card).

 

Accordingly, strictly speaking, a white-card holder would only be eligible for the relevant treatments as they were applied to the condition in respect of which the person was eligible to be treated.

 

However the relevant treatments are more whole-of-person treatments than treatments applied to a particular condition and therefore, prima facie, a white-card holder could miss out on a significant part of a relevant treatment because the person would not be eligible to receive it.

 

To prevent this situation, the attached Determination makes an entitled person within the class in question eligible for the relevant treatment irrespective of whether the person is otherwise only eligible for treatment under the Act of a particular condition.  Accordingly the treatments could be applied to the person generally, including to their service-condition. 

 

Under the Act, treatment must generally be for an injury or disease.  However the relevant treatments tend to be applied more to the effects of frailty or to a person’s recuperative needs than to any injury or disease albeit a person may have an injury or disease to which the treatments could be applied.  Prima facie, therefore, if a person did not have an injury or disease, as required by the Act, but was frail or was recuperating from an operation, then the person could not receive the relevant treatments.

 

To prevent this situation, the attached determination makes a person eligible for the relevant treatments even though the person does not have an injury or disease.  The person is simply eligible for the treatments as they may be applied to the person, including as they may be applied to any injury or disease of a person.

 

RETROSPECTIVE

 

Yes.  For the treatment known as community aged care package or extended aged care at home package the attached legislative instrument is taken to have commenced on 21 August 2009 i.e. before registration on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments. 

 

However the instrument will not contravene subsection 12(2) of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003 because it does not negatively affect any person.  The instrument reinforces the eligibility for treatment some entitled persons have been receiving on and from 21 August 2009.

 

CONSULTATION

 

No.  The instrument is beneficial and therefore persons affected by it could be expected to agree with it.  In any event, some interested parties would already be receiving the relevant treatment and learning that their eligibility for the treatment has been strengthened would be unlikely to interest them.

 

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED-BY-REFERENCE

 

No.

 

FURTHER EXPLANATION

 

Attachment A.

 


Attachment A

 

Items    Explanation

 

1.1 sets out the name of the determination.

 

1.2 provides that for treatment that is a community aged care package or an extended aged care at home package the determination is taken to have commenced on 21 August 2009.

 

Schedule

 

1.3 is a definitions section.

 

1.4  sets out the purpose of the Determination, namely to grant eligibility for the treatments of community aged care package, extended aged care at home package, and transition care, to veterans who are former prisoners of war or who are recipients of the Victoria Cross.

 

Part 2 specifies the classes of entitled persons eligible for the relevant treatment, namely veterans who:

 

  •    are former prisoners of war; or
  •    are recipients of the Victoria Cross

 

Part 3 specifies the treatment a veteran in the relevant class is eligible to be provided by the Repatriation Commission namely:

 

  • community aged care package
  • extended aged care at home package
  • transition care.

Overview

The Veterans’ Entitlements (Transition Care/Community Care at Home Package – Co Payment for Ex POW/Victoria Cross Recipients) Eligibility Determination 2011 was enacted to address a gap in the provision of comprehensive care for certain veterans, namely former prisoners of war and recipients of the Victoria Cross. This legislative instrument aims to ensure that these distinguished veterans receive whole-of-person treatments, including community aged care packages, extended aged care at home packages, and transition care, without restriction to specific conditions or injuries. This is achieved by conferring eligibility for these treatments irrespective of whether the veteran is only eligible for treatment of a particular condition or does not have an injury or disease, thereby accommodating the broader effects of frailty and recuperative needs. Enacted by the Parliament of Australia under the authority of the Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986, the policy objective of this Determination is to enhance the quality of care and support provided to these deserving groups of veterans, ensuring they receive the comprehensive care they need and deserve.

Scope and Application

The Veterans’ Entitlements (Transition Care/Community Care at Home Package – Co Payment for Ex POW/Victoria Cross Recipients) Eligibility Determination 2011 applies to specific veterans, namely those who are former prisoners of war or recipients of the Victoria Cross. These veterans are granted eligibility for certain comprehensive treatments, which include community aged care packages, extended aged care at home packages, and transition care, as defined under the Treatment Principles made under section 90 of the Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986. This Determination ensures that these veterans receive whole-of-person treatment, irrespective of whether they are otherwise only eligible for treatment of a specific condition or injury. By doing so, it addresses the potential exclusion of significant parts of these treatments that could otherwise apply only to the specific condition for which the veteran was initially eligible, thereby extending the scope of treatment to encompass the broader effects of frailty or recuperative needs. The application of this Determination is retrospective, effective from 21 August 2009, and it does not negatively affect any person, thus complying with the requirements of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.

Key Provisions

The Veterans' Entitlements (Transition Care/Community Care at Home Package – Co Payment for Ex POW/Victoria Cross Recipients) Eligibility Determination 2011 specifies the class of entitled persons and the treatment they are eligible to receive under the Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986 (the Act) (Section 1). The class includes veterans who are former prisoners of war or recipients of the Victoria Cross. These veterans are eligible for community aged care packages, extended aged care at home packages, and transition care provided under the Treatment Principles made under section 90 of the Act (Section 1). The Act imposes obligations on certain veterans, particularly those who are former prisoners of war or recipients of the Victoria Cross, to be eligible for the specified treatments regardless of whether they are receiving treatment for a particular condition or injury. This is to ensure that the treatments are applied comprehensively, including to their service-related conditions (Section 1). The Act also mandates that the treatments must generally be for an injury or disease, but the Determination allows for these treatments to be applied to the effects of frailty or to recuperative needs even if the veteran does not have an injury or disease (Section 1). The Determination imposes no specific obligations on the parties or entities it governs beyond clarifying eligibility for the specified treatments. It ensures that veterans who are former prisoners of war or recipients of the Victoria Cross receive the necessary care without the constraints that might otherwise apply under the general provisions of the Act. This means they can access community aged care packages, extended aged care at home packages, and transition care as needed, even if these are not strictly tied to a particular service-related injury or disease (Section 1). There are no specific offences, penalties, or civil/criminal consequences outlined for breaches of this Determination. The Determination is designed to clarify and reinforce eligibility, ensuring that eligible veterans receive the appropriate care without additional legal repercussions for non-compliance. The retrospective effect of the Determination means that it applies from 21 August 2009, reinforcing existing eligibility without imposing new burdens or penalties (Section 1).

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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.