Health Insurance Amendment (100% Medicare Rebate and Other Measures) Act 2004

No. 138, 2004

An Act to amend the Health Insurance Act 1973, and for related purposes

[Assented to 13 December 2004]

The Parliament of Australia enacts:

This Act may be cited as the Health Insurance Amendment (100% Medicare Rebate and Other Measures) Act 2004.

(1) Each provision of this Act specified in column 1 of the table commences, or is taken to have commenced, in accordance with column 2 of the table. Any other statement in column 2 has effect according to its terms.

Commencement information
Column 1	Column 2	Column 3
Provision(s)	Commencement	Date/Details
1. Sections 1 to 3 and anything in this Act not elsewhere covered by this table	The day on which this Act receives the Royal Assent.	13 December 2004
2. Schedule 1	1 January 2005.	1 January 2005
3. Schedule 2	The day on which this Act receives the Royal Assent.	13 December 2004

Note: This table relates only to the provisions of this Act as originally passed by the Parliament and assented to. It will not be expanded to deal with provisions inserted in this Act after assent.

(2) Column 3 of the table contains additional information that is not part of this Act. Information in this column may be added to or edited in any published version of this Act.

3 Schedule(s)

Each Act that is specified in a Schedule to this Act is amended or repealed as set out in the applicable items in the Schedule concerned, and any other item in a Schedule to this Act has effect according to its terms.

Schedule 1—100% Medicare benefit for certain services

Health Insurance Act 1973

1 After paragraph 10(2)(a)

Insert:

(aa) in the case of a service to which paragraph (a) does not apply and that is prescribed by the regulations for the purposes of this paragraph—an amount equal to 100% of the Schedule fee; or

2 After subsection 10(2)

Insert:

(2A) Without limiting the generality of regulations for the purposes of paragraph (2)(aa), the regulations may prescribe services for the purposes of that paragraph by identifying, in the table, the services concerned.

3 Application of amendments

The amendments made by this Schedule apply to professional services begun to be rendered on or after 1 January 2005.

Schedule 2—Eligibility for extended Medicare safety‑net

Health Insurance Act 1973

1 Subsection 8(1A) (before the note at the end of the definition of FTB(A) family)

Insert:

; or (c) if a determination for the purposes of this paragraph is in force under section 8A—after the time specified in, or worked out in accordance with, the determination.

2 Subsection 8(1A) (note)

Omit “A New Tax System (Family Assistance) (Administration) Act 1999”, substitute “A New Tax System (Family Assistance) Act 1999”.

3 After section 8

Insert:

8A Minister may determine registered family is FTB(A) family

(1) The Minister may, in writing, determine that a registered family is an FTB(A) family for the purposes of paragraph (c) of the definition of FTB(A) family in subsection 8(1A).

(2) The determination must specify the time, or how to work out the time, after which the registered family is an FTB(A) family for the purposes of the paragraph.

(3) A determination under this section is a disallowable instrument for the purposes of section 46A of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901.