Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements

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HEALTH INSURANCE REGULATIONS (AMENDMENT) 1994 NO. 137

STATUTORY RULES 1994 No. 137

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.

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

Section 3D of the Act provides that a medical practitioner domiciled in Australia, who is a fellow of an organisation declared by the Regulations under subparagraph 3D(1)(a)(i) to be a professional organisation in relation to a particular medical specialty, who has obtained qualifications prescribed in the regulations, or who is registered under the law of a State or Territory as a specialist in a particular speciality, and who applies to the Minister and pays the prescribed fee, is eligible to be recognised as a specialist in the specialty for the purposes of the Act.

The Regulations amend Schedule 4 ("the Schedule") to the Health Insurance Regulations, which lists the declared professional organisations, specialities and qualifications for the purposes of section 3D of the Act.

The principal change brought about by Regulation 2 is that the National Specialist Qualification Advisory Committee ("NSQAC") has recommended that the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine be declared under subparagraph 3D(1)(a)(i) to be the relevant organisation in relation to the specialty of Emergency Medicine. The Minister approved the recommendation.

Regulation 2 amends Schedule 4 in a number of other respects:

(a)       With regard to the previously declared specialty of Anaesthesia, the organisation representing the specialty, the Faculty of Anaesthetists, Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, has been wound up and replaced by a new organisation, the Australian & New Zealand College of Anaesthetists. The Schedule has been amended to reflect this change, and also to reflect the fact that the specialty has undergone a name change, from "Anaesthetics" to "Anaesthesia".

(b)       With regard to the specialty of Intensive Care, the Faculty of Intensive Care has been established within the Australian & New Zealand College of Anaesthetists to have responsibility for this specialty. The Schedule has been amended to include the additional organisations of the Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists and the Faculty of Intensive Care within the College, and the specialties of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care.

(c)       With regard to the specialty of Rehabilitation Medicine, the organisation representing the specialty, the Australasian College of Rehabilitation Medicine, has been wound up and replaced by a new organisation, the Australasian Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine within the Royal Australasian College of Physicians.

In addition, the name of the former organisation has been changed from "the Australian College of Rehabilitation Medicine", to "the Australasian College of Rehabilitation Medicine".

(d)       Two other minor changes to the Schedule concern firstly, the specialty of Otorhinolaryngology, which has undergone a name change and is now known as "Otolaryngology"; and the correction of a spelling error in the Schedule, relating to the Royal Australian College of Ophthalmologists.

The regulations will commence on Gazettal.