Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements

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NATIONAL HEALTH REGULATIONS (AMENDMENT) 1997 NO. 16

STATUTORY RULES 1997 No. 16

Issued by authority of the Minister for Health and Family Services

National Health Act 1953

National Health Regulations (Amendment)

Section 140 of the National Health Act 1953 (the Act) provides that the Governor-General may make Regulations for the purposes of the Act.

Subsection 140(2) of the Act makes provision to preclude or modify, by National Health Regulation, certain benefit arrangements to permit pilot or demonstration schemes which could lead to an enhancement of the health insurance industry.

The Regulations set up a trial program for patients to be paid health insurance benefits for hospital type treatment rendered to them in their own homes. The treatment rendered at home is treatment that the patient would otherwise require hospitalisation to receive.

Regulation 3 specifies the four health funds that are participating in the trial to pay health insurance benefits for the duration of the trial.

Regulation 4 provides the mechanism for the funds to pay benefits for participating patients from their hospital tables. It specifies the amount of benefit that is payable and the hospital tables that the benefits will be payable from.

The hospital that will participate in the trial is St Francis Xavier Cabrini Private Hospital. It will operate a Domiciliary Palliative Care Program (the Program) to provide an early discharge program for suitable patients in their hospital. The hospital will provide hospital type treatment to patients in their own homes. The Program will provide treatment that would otherwise be rendered in the hospital. The hospital has primarily devised the Program for palliative cancer patients. It evolved in response to patient expectations for an improved quality of fife during a most difficult and traumatic period.

The hospital has proposed the Program in order to respond to patient demand and to utilise its ability to provide hospital type treatment in an environment outside the hospital. The four participating health funds will benefit by paying benefits that are significantly lower than would otherwise be payable for patients in a hospital environment,

At the moment, funds cannot pay benefits from their hospital tables for hospital type treatment rendered out of hospital. The Regulations enable funds to use their hospital tables to pay benefits for hospital type treatment.

The Program will run for a twelve month period commencing on 1 March 1997. It will be subject to ongoing monitoring and evaluation. This Program will provide the opportunity to evaluate an alternative method of health services that appears to offer considerable advantages over traditional health care delivery with a view to encompassing it into mainstream care.

The regulations come into effect from 1 March 1997.