Commonwealth Numbered Acts

HEALTH INSURANCE AMENDMENT ACT 1978 No. 89 of 1978 - SECT 10

10. (1) Section 32 of the Principal Act is repealed and the following sections
substituted: Submission of budget for recognized hospitals in Australian
Capital Territory
''32. (1) The Minister may-

   (a)  approve such hospitals in the Australian Capital Territory as he
        thinks fit as recognized hospitals for the purposes of this section;
        and

   (b)  approve a body corporate established by a law of the Australian
        Capital Territory as the prescribed hospital authority in relation to
        those recognized hospitals.

''(2) The Minister may, from time to time, require the prescribed hospital
authority to submit for his approval a budget, in accordance with a form
approved by the Minister, in respect of a period specified by the Minister in
his requirement, setting out-

   (a)  estimates of the payments to be made, during that period, by or on
        behalf of the recognized hospitals in the Australian Capital
        Territory, being payments of the kinds provided for in the form;

   (b)  estimates of the receipts to be received, during that period, by or on
        behalf of the recognized hospitals in the Australian Capital
        Territory, being receipts of the kinds provided for in the form; and

   (c)  the estimated net operating costs of the recognized hospitals in the
        Australian Capital Territory for that period, being the amount by
        which the aggregate of the estimates referred to in paragraph (a)
        exceeds the aggregate of the estimates referred to in paragraph (b).

''(3) The Minister may approve a budget submitted under sub-section (2),
including such a budget as altered by him under sub-section (6).

''(4) The prescribed hospital authority may, at any time after the approval of
a budget under sub-section (3) (including a time after the expiration of the
period to which the budget relates), submit to the Minister proposed
variations of that budget.

''(5) The Minister may approve variations of an approved budget submitted to
him under sub-section (4), including such variations as altered by him under
sub-section (6), and, on the giving of such an approval, the budget as so
varied shall be deemed to be the budget as approved under this section.

''(6) In the course of his consideration of a budget submitted under
sub-section (2) or of the variations of an approved budget submitted under
sub-section (4), the Minister may-

   (a)  seek further information from the prescribed hospital authority with
        respect to any matter relevant to that consideration; and

   (b)  make any alterations in the budget, or the variations, so submitted.

''(7) Where the Minister has given an approval under this section, he shall
notify the prescribed hospital authority, in writing, accordingly. Payments in
respect of recognized hospitals in the Australian Capital Territory
''32A. (1) In this section-

'approved budget' means a budget as approved under section 32;

'approved net operating costs', in relation to recognized hospitals for a
budget period, means the estimated net operating costs of the hospitals for
that period as shown by the approved budget for that period;

'budget period', in relation to an approved budget, means the period to which
the budget relates;

'net operating costs', in relation to recognized hospitals for a budget
period, means the amount by which the operating payments in respect of the
hospitals for that period exceed the operating receipts in respect of the
hospitals for that period;

'operating payments', in relation to recognized hospitals for a budget period,
means the payments made, during that period, by or on behalf of the hospitals,
being payments of the kinds for which estimates have been made in the approved
budget in respect of those hospitals for that period;

'operating receipts', in relation to recognized hospitals for a budget period,
means the receipts received, during that period, by or on behalf of the
hospitals, being receipts of the kinds for which estimates have been made in
the approved budget in respect of those hospitals for that period;

'prescribed hospital authority' means the prescribed hospital authority for
the purposes of section 32;

'recognized hospital' means a hospital that is a recognized hospital for the
purposes of section 32.

''(2) There is payable by the Commonwealth to the prescribed hospital
authority, in respect of a budget period, an amount equal to-

   (a)  50 per centum of the approved net operating costs, for that budget
        period, of the recognized hospitals concerned; or

   (b)  50 per centum of the net operating costs, for that budget period, of
        the recognized hospitals concerned, whichever is the less.

''(3) Where the amount payable under sub-section (2) for a budget period is an
amount calculated in accordance with paragraph (2) (a), the Minister may, if
he is satisfied that circumstances justify a further payment for that period,
approve the making of such further payment to the prescribed hospital
authority as he considers justified, being a payment of an amount not
exceeding the amount by which the amount calculated in accordance with
paragraph (2) (b) for that budget period exceeds the amount calculated in
accordance with paragraph (2) (a) for that budget period.

''(4) A payment under this section is subject to such conditions as the
Minister determines having regard to the terms and conditions specified in
relation to the States in the Heads of Agreement set out in Schedule 2 and the
terms and conditions of the agreements with the States executed under section
30.

''(5) Nothing in this section affects the operation of section 133A of the
National Health Act 1953.''.

(2) Notwithstanding the repeal effected by sub-section (1)-

   (a)  section 32 of the Principal Act continues to apply in relation to any
        period before the commencement of this section; and

   (b)  an approval of a hospital for the purposes of section 32 of the
        Principal Act in force immediately before the commencement of this
        section continues in force after the commencement of this section as
        if it had been given for the purposes of section 32 of the Principal
        Act, as amended by this Act.