Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements

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HEALTH INSURANCE REGULATIONS (AMENDMENT) 1994 NO. 111

STATUTORY RULES 1994 No. 111

Issued by the authority of the Minister for Human Services and Health

Health Insurance Act 1973

Health Insurance Regulations (Amendment)

The Health Insurance Act 1973 (the Act) provides in part for the payment of medicare benefits for professional services rendered by medical practitioners and for certain professional services rendered by dental practitioners and optometrists.

Section 133 of the Act provides that the Governor-General may make regulations for the purposes of the Act.

Section 4AA of the Act provides that regulations may prescribe a table of diagnostic imaging services. The Health Insurance (Diagnostic Imaging Services Table) Regulations prescribe such a table.

Subsection 16B(1) of the Act provides in part that medicare benefits are not payable for an R-type diagnostic imaging service unless the service was requested by a medical practitioner, a dental practitioner or by certain other practitioners.

Subsection 16B(2) of the Act provides that regulations may prescribe Rtype diagnostic imaging services that may be requested by dental practitioners. Regulation 10 of the Health Insurance Regulations (the Regulations) specifies the relevant items in the Diagnostic Imaging Services Table.

Subregulation 3 repealed Regulation 8 which inadvertently remained in the Regulations when section 13 of the Health Insurance Act was repealed in 1988.

The amended range of diagnostic imaging services contained in the amendment to Regulation 10 has been agreed to by representatives of the dental profession.

The Regulations amend Regulation 10(1)(a) by adding item numbers 61423, 61424, 61447, 61448 and 61490 to the list of diagnostic imaging services which may be requested by oral and maxillofacial surgeons.

The Regulations commence on 1 May 1994.