A Bill for an Act to amend the Health Insurance Act 1973, and for other purposes
The Parliament of Australia enacts:
1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the Health Insurance Amendment (Extended Medicare Safety Net) Act 2012.
2 Commencement
(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 this Act receives the Royal Assent. | |
| 2. Schedule 1, items 1 and 2 | A single day to be fixed by Proclamation. However, if the provision(s) do not commence within the period of 6 months beginning on the day this Act receives the Royal Assent, they commence on the day after the end of that period. | |
| 3. Schedule 1, item 3 | The day after this Act receives the Royal Assent. | |
| 4. Schedule 1, item 4 | At the same time as the provision(s) covered by table item 2. | |
Note: This table relates only to the provisions of this Act as originally enacted. It will not be amended to deal with any later amendments of this Act.
(2) Any information in column 3 of the table is not part of this Act. Information may be inserted in this column, or information in it may be 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Each Act that is specified in a Schedule to this Act is amended or repealed as set out in the applicable items in the Schedule concerned, and any other item in a Schedule to this Act has effect according to its terms.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—Amendments
Health Insurance Act 1973
1 After subsection 10ACA(7A)
Insert:
(7AA) If:
(a) 2 or more services (the original services) that are each specified in an item are deemed to constitute, or are treated as, one service (the deemed service) under this Act (other than a provision of this Act prescribed by the regulations); and
(b) all of the items in which the original services are specified are items determined under section 10B to be items to which subsection (7A) of this section applies; and
(c) the current claim is for the deemed service;
then, despite subsections (2) and (7) of this section, the increase under this section in the benefit payable in respect of the claim cannot exceed the sum of the amounts determined under section 10B as the maximum increases for those items.
Note: For when 2 or more services are deemed to constitute one service, see sections 15 and 16.
2 After subsection 10ADA(8A)
Insert:
(8AA) If:
(a) 2 or more services (the original services) that are each specified in an item are deemed to constitute, or are treated as, one service (the deemed service) under this Act (other than a provision of this Act prescribed by the regulations); and
(b) all of the items in which the original services are specified are items determined under section 10B to be items to which subsection (8A) of this section applies; and
(c) the current claim is for the deemed service;
then, despite subsections (3) and (8) of this section, the increase under this section in the benefit payable in respect of the claim cannot exceed the sum of the amounts determined under section 10B as the maximum increases for those items.
Note: For when 2 or more services are deemed to constitute one service, see sections 15 and 16.
3 Subsection 10AE(1)
Omit “state, in writing,”, substitute “state, in a manner approved by the Chief Executive Medicare,”.
4 Application provision
Subsections 10ACA(7AA) and 10ADA(8AA) of the Health Insurance Act 1973, as inserted by this Schedule, apply in relation to services rendered after the commencement of this item.