Details of the Financial Framework (Supplementary Powers) Amendment (Health Measures No. 5) Regulation 2016
Section 1 - Name
This section provides that the title of the Regulation is the Financial Framework (Supplementary Powers) Amendment (Health Measures No. 5) Regulation 2016.
Section 2 - Commencement
This section provides that the Regulation commences on the day after it is registered on the Federal Register of Legislation.
Section 3 - Authority
This section provides that the Regulation is made under the Financial Framework (Supplementary Powers) Act 1997.
Section 4 - Schedules
This section provides that the Financial Framework (Supplementary Powers) Regulations 1997 are amended as set out in the Schedules to the Regulation.
Schedule 1 - Amendments
Item 1 - In the appropriate position in Part 4 of Schedule 1AB (table)
This item adds two new table items to Part 4 of Schedule 1AB to establish legislative authority for government spending on the National Support for Child and Youth Mental Health Program and the Early Psychosis Youth Services Program. These spending activities will be administered by the Department of Health.
New table item 192 establishes legislative authority for government spending on the National Support for Child and Youth Mental Health Program.
The Program consolidates the currently funded school-based mental health programs into a single, integrated, end-to-end school-based mental health program. It also ceases the currently funded workforce support programs to fund a national workforce support initiative to assist professionals and services who work with children.
The Program aims to improve mental health outcomes for children and young people, commencing with the early years and going through to adolescence. The objectives of the Program are to:
* build resilience skills and protective factors in children and young people to help promote a mentally healthy life;
* build and promote the evidence base around mental health promotion, illness prevention and early intervention strategies for children and young people;
* improve access to, and effectiveness of, early intervention services for children and young people at risk of, or experiencing, mental health difficulties; and
* provide suicide postvention services to support students in secondary schools to minimise the distress caused to students and reduce the risk of suicide clusters in the peer group.
The Program comprises grants funding for its two elements - National Workforce Support in Child Mental Health and Mental Health in Education. Funding of up to $72.6 million is available for the Program over three years commencing in 2016-17.
National Workforce Support in Child Mental Health
Funding of up to $18.7 million will be available from March 2017 to June 2019 to identify and address the workforce needs across the full spectrum of existing clinical and non-clinical support services that work with children at risk of mental health difficulties in Australia. The objective of this element of the Program is to assist clinical and non-clinical professionals and services who work with children, to identify, support and refer children at risk of mental health difficulties, and to promote resilience building within children. This element will particularly support professionals working with children who would benefit from early intervention, including those who have experienced trauma. This element of the Program will also support professionals working with the parents and guardians of these children with a view to assisting them to care effectively for their child.
Activities that could be funded under this element include:
* the continued development and effective dissemination of the evidence base for improving mental health outcomes for children at risk of, or experiencing, mental health difficulties;
* skills development through education and training for clinical and non-clinical professionals and services who work with children at risk of, or experiencing, mental health difficulties;
* communication activities to provide information on and awareness of the new initiative;
* development of an evaluation framework to monitor and assess the impact of the grant; and
* the provision of advice to the Government on opportunities to improve the mental health and wellbeing of children.
Mental Health in Education
Funding of up to $53.9 million will be available from March 2017 to June 2019 to support promotion and prevention activities and assist in building resilience skills in children and young people by providing national leadership in positive environments in early childhood services and schools. The objectives of this element of the Program are to:
* increase the capacity of early childhood services, and primary and secondary schools to implement an approach to evidence-based mental health promotion, prevention and early intervention;
* increase the inclusion and coverage of mental health and suicide prevention in pre-service education through the tertiary and vocational education training sectors for teachers and early childhood staff; and
* design and deliver suicide postvention to respond to, and assist, secondary schools in supporting students in the event of a suicide of a student.
Activities that could be funded include:
* the development, expansion or enhancement of a model around child and youth mental health promotion, prevention and early intervention for implementation in early childhood services, and primary and secondary schools;
* the provision of professional development for early childhood workers, school teachers and support personnel in implementing the model;
* the provision of hardcopy resources designed to support students; a website and implementation support for early childhood workers, school teachers and support personnel for the model;
* the facilitation of relationships between early childhood, primary and secondary schools, and health/community services to strengthen referral pathways;
* the development of partnerships between early childhood, primary and secondary schools and families that support and contribute to student mental health and wellbeing;
* the development of linkages with the National Workforce Support element to assist early childhood workers and primary school teachers to identify, support and refer children at risk of mental health difficulties;
* the development and promotion of a pre-service workforce education model and resources for early childhood workers and teachers;
* the promotion and advocacy for mental health issues to be included in curricula for pre-service teachers and early childhood workers;
* the provision of suicide postvention services to support students in secondary schools to minimise the distress caused to students and reduce the risk of suicide clusters in the peer group;
* the development and delivery of an effective communications strategy to promote mental health in education through the Student Wellbeing Hub;
* the development of an evaluation framework to monitor and assess the impact of the grant; and
* the provision of advice to the Government on opportunities to improve the mental health and wellbeing for children and young people.
The Program is part of the Government's response to Contributing Lives, Thriving Communities - Review of Mental Health Programs and Services. The Prime Minister, the Hon Malcolm Turnbull MP, and the then Minister for Health, the Hon Sussan Ley MP, released the Government's response, including 'A New Blueprint for Mental Health Services', on 26 November 2015.
Spending decisions for the two elements of the Program will be based on an open competitive grant process. Following assessment for the National Workforce Support in Child Mental Health grant funding, the Assessment Committee will make recommendations to the Assistant Secretary, Mental Health Early Intervention Branch in the Department of Health, as the delegate of the Minister for Health and Aged Care, who will make the final decision to approve a grant.
Following assessment for the Mental Health in Education grant funding, the Assessment Committee will make recommendations to the First Assistant Secretary, Health Services Division in the Department of Health, as the delegate of the Minister for Health and Aged Care, who will make the final decision to approve a grant.
An overview of the assessment criteria will be included in the grant guidelines. The full details of the assessment criteria will be available publicly on the Department's website when an approach to market for each element of the Program is being advertised. The grant guidelines will be published on the Department's Tenders and Grants page at http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/Listing+of+Tenders+and+Grants-1.
Relevant details of successful applicants' activities will be made public and posted on the Department's Tenders and Grants website as part of the Department's legislative reporting obligations under the Commonwealth Grants Rules and Guidelines.
The Program guidelines will provide details on merits review and the complaints process. The Department's grant and procurement complaints procedures apply to complaints, including requests for merits review that arise in relation to grant and procurement processes. They cover events that occur between the time the funding round documentation is released to potential applicants and the date of contract execution, regardless of when the actual complaint is made.
Complaints, including requests for merits review, are able to be lodged by contacting the relevant departmental contact officer providing the details of the basis for the complaint. Complaints are acknowledged within 10 days of lodging and complainants are given 15 days to respond to any correspondence from the Department unless the matter is urgent. The departmental contact officer and their supervisor will try to resolve the matter. The Department will advise of a decision within a reasonable timeframe, which is usually within 15 working days after receiving all written correspondence relating to a complaint.
If a complainant is not satisfied with the Department's decision, then they can apply for independent internal departmental review of the complaint.
The Department requires that all complaints relating to a grant or procurement process must be lodged in writing within six months from the announcement of the outcome of the process.
Further information can be found at http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/pfps-complaintsprocedures.
Applicants are also able to seek review from the Commonwealth Ombudsman. No further merits review is provided for given these available avenues for review.
Funding for this item will come from Program 2.1: Mental Health, which is part of Outcome 2: Health Access and Support Services, as set out in the Portfolio Budget Statements 2016-17, Budget Related Paper No. 1.10, Health Portfolio at page 59.
Noting that it is not a comprehensive statement of relevant constitutional considerations, the objective of the item references the following constitutional powers:
* the communications power (section 51(v));
* the social welfare power (section 51(xxiiiA));
* the external affairs power (section 51(xxix)); and
* the territories power (section 122).
New table item 193 establishes legislative authority for government spending on the Early Psychosis Youth Services Program.
This is a program of activities which will continue efforts to reduce the impact of severe mental illness on young Australians aged 12 to 25 years and their families by restoring funding to six Early Psychosis Youth Services and engaging the National Centre of Excellence in Youth Mental Health (Orygen) to provide guidance, support, and expert advice to Primary Health Networks (PHNs).
The Program aims to reduce the impact and severity of psychosis amongst young Australians through the provision of early intervention and intensive support services. These services are based on the Early Psychosis Prevention and Intervention Centre (EPPIC) model developed by Orygen.
The EPPIC model of care has 16 core components that overlap and link together to provide an integrated comprehensive early intervention service. Research and experience have shown this model to work effectively to promote the recovery of young people.
Funded activities will include: community education and awareness; home-based care and assessment; continuing care case management; medical treatments; psychological interventions; functional recovery programs; mobile outreach; group programs; family programs and family peer support; youth participation and peer support programs; partnerships; and workforce development.
The Program is delivered through the headspace centre network in six services across the country - South East Melbourne, Western Sydney, the Gold Coast, North Perth, Darwin and Adelaide.
Funding of $85.65 million will be provided to the six services via their PHN for three years commencing in 2016-17. Funding will be provided to the headspace national office to continue to support the lead agencies operating headspace centres in meeting clinical governance requirements; collecting activity data for the Program; and providing workforce support to headspace staff delivering the Program at each of the six centres. Funding details for the Program will be included in the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook 2016-17.
Orygen currently receives funding from the Department to conduct and coordinate research and knowledge translation activities across Australia that will deliver improved health outcomes for young people aged 12 to 25 years experiencing mental ill-health. Orygen will receive additional funds to provide guidance, support and expert advice to PHNs for planning and commissioning services for young people with, or at risk of, severe mental illness to assist PHNs to deliver services that are in line with evidence-based best practice.
Funding will also be provided for an evaluation of the Program. Funding to the headspace national office, Orygen and an independent evaluator will be provided under a separate stream to that provided to the six headspace centres via their PHNs.
The Program is part of the Government's 'Strengthen Mental Health Care in Australia' election commitment announced in June 2016.
Spending decisions under the Program will be made by PHNs and lead agencies operating headspace centres.
Funding to the existing headspace centres will be directed to PHNs under a funding agreement with the Department of Health, approved by the First Assistant Secretary of the Health Services Division, as the delegate of the Secretary. The delegate will also approve funding for the headspace national office and Orygen via funding agreements and for an independent evaluator via a contract for services.
Relevant details of the Department of Health's funding agreements and contracts for services are published in its Annual Report.
Grant guidelines will be in place for funding to PHNs, the headspace national office and Orygen.
An independent evaluator will be selected from the Department's panel of program reviewers and evaluators.
As funding is targeted, non-competitive, and for a specific purpose, merits review is not applicable.
The Government has funded PHNs to plan, commission and integrate mental health services at a regional level to improve outcomes for people with, or at risk of, mental illness. PHNs with organisations operating headspace centres will be provided with top-up funding to restore full funding to these services. Orygen will receive additional funds to provide expert advice to PHNs for developing models of care and commissioning services for young people with, or at risk of, severe mental illness. These organisations have demonstrated experience in the planning and delivery of the Program.
Further information on the Program can be found on headspace's website at https://headspace.org.au/about-us/ and Orygen's website at https://www.orygen.org.au/Our-Research/Research-Areas/First-Episode-Psychosis.
Funding for this item will come from Program 2.1: Mental Health, which is part of Outcome 2: Health Access and Support Services. Details will be set out in the Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements 2016-17: Health Portfolio.
Noting that it is not a comprehensive statement of relevant constitutional considerations, the objective of the item references the following powers of the Constitution:
* the social welfare power (section 51(xxiiiA));
* the external affairs power (section 51(xxix)); and
* the territories power (section 122).
Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements