Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements

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HEATH INSURANCE AMENDMENT REGULATIONS 2004 (NO. 7) 2004 NO. 305

Subsection 133(1) of the Health Insurance Act 1973 (the Act) provides, in part, that the Governor-General may make regulations, not inconsistent with the Act, prescribing all matters required or permitted by the Act to be prescribed, or necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to the Act.

Subsection 3C(1) of the Act enables the Minister to make a written determination in respect of a health service, or a health service in a specified class of health services, for the purposes of payment of Medicare benefits. The definition of 'health service' in subsection 3C(8) specifies the types of health services that may be subject to a determination under subsection 3C(1). Paragraph (b) of that definition enables other types of health services to be prescribed by regulations.

The table in subregulation 3A(1) of the Health Insurance Regulations 1975 prescribes health services for the purposes of paragraph (b) of the definition of 'health service' in subsection 3C(8) of the Act.

The purpose of the Regulations is to prescribe diabetes education as a health service for the purposes of section 3C of the Act. The Regulations enable Medicare benefits to be payable for diabetes education services in specified circumstances, giving effect to one of the changes to Medicare announced in September 2004.

Once diabetes education is prescribed as a health service, the Minister for Health and Ageing may make a written determination under subsection 3C(1) of the Act specifying fees and other conditions applying to that service under the Medicare Benefits Schedule.

A determination made by the Minister under subsection 3C(1) of the Act is a disallowable instrument for the purposes of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901.

Details of the Regulations are set out in the Attachment.

The Act specifies no conditions that need to be met before the power to make the Regulations may be exercised.

The Regulations commence on 1 November 2004.

ATTACHMENT

DETAILS OF THE HEALTH INSURANCE AMENDMENT REGULATIONS 2004 (No. 7)

Regulation 1 provides for the Regulations to be referred to as the Health Insurance Amendment Regulations 2004 (No. 7).

Regulation 2 provides for the Regulations to commence on 1 November 2004.

Regulation 3 provides for Schedule 1 to amend the Health Insurance Regulations 1975 (the Principal Regulations).

Schedule 1 - Amendment

Item [1]

This item amends subregulation 3A(1) of the Principal Regulations to prescribe diabetes education as a "health service" for the purposes of section 3C of the Health Insurance Act 1973.