Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements

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HEALTH INSURANCE AMENDMENT REGULATIONS 1999 (NO. 3) 1999 NO. 157

STATUTORY RULES 1999 NO. 157

Issued by authority of the Minister for Health and Aged Care

Health Insurance Act 1973

Health Insurance Amendment Regulations 1999 (No. 3)

The Health Insurance Act 1973 ("the Act") provides for payments by way of Medicare benefits and payments for hospital services.

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

Sections 4 and 4AA of the Act provide that regulations may prescribe a table of medical services and a table of diagnostic imaging services (the tables). The Health Insurance (1998-99 General Medical Services Table) Regulations and the Health Insurance (1998-99 Diagnostic Imaging Services Table) Regulations 1998 currently prescribe such tables.

The Regulations:

(1)       Include the speciality of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery under Schedule 4 of the Health Insurance Regulations. The recognised specialty is prescribed as a Fellowship of the Royal Australasian College of Dental Surgeons (Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery);

(2)       Correct anomalies between the item numbers which appear in the Health Insurance Regulations 1975 with those appearing in the Health Insurance (1998-99 General Medical Services Table) Regulations 1998 and the Health Insurance (1998-99 Diagnostic Imaging Services Table) Regulations 1998; and

(3)       Provide that referrals for specialist services are valid from the date of the first service given in accordance with the referral.

Regulations 1 and 2 set out the name and commencement date of the Regulations.

Regulation 3 provides for amendments to the Regulations as set out in Schedule 1.

Schedule 1

Items 1 to 5 make minor machinery amendments to ensure that the references to items in the Health Insurance Regulations correctly refer to items in the tables. This is to reflect recent changes to the tables where new items have been added and superfluous items have been removed from the tables.

Item 6 clarifies that referrals given for a fixed period under paragraph 31(1)(a) become valid for that period after the service is given in accordance with the referral. This is similar to referrals given under paragraph 31(1)(c) of the Health Insurance Regulations which provides that where a referral period is not specified, the referral is valid for 12 months after the first service is given in accordance with the referral.

Item 7 prescribes an administering body and qualification for the new specialty of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery.

The Regulations commenced on Gazettal.