Statutory Rules 1995   No. 3001

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Health Insurance Regulations2 (Amendment)

I, The ADMINISTRATOR of the Government of the Commonwealth of Australia, acting with the advice of the Federal Executive Council, make the following Regulations under the Health Insurance Act 1973.

Dated 19 October 1995.

 P. R. SINCLAIR

 Administrator

By His Excellency’s Command,

CARMEN LAWRENCE

Minister for Human Services and Health

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1.   Commencement

1.1   These Regulations commence on 1 November 1995.

2.   Amendment

2.1   The Health Insurance Regulations are amended as set out in these Regulations.

3.   Regulation 30 (Referrals:  special cases)

3.1   Subregulation 30 (4):

Omit the subregulation, substitute:

 “(4) If, in an emergency, a specialist or consultant physician:

 (a) decides that it is necessary in the patient’s interest to give a professional service as soon as practicable and without a referral otherwise than under this subregulation; and

 (b) gives that service to the patient;

the specialist or consultant physician is taken to have been the referring practitioner and to have given a referral for the service.

 “(5) For the purposes of subregulations (2) and (4), an emergency is a situation where the patient is treated by a medical practitioner within 30 minutes of presentation and that patient is:

 (a) at risk of serious morbidity or mortality requiring urgent assessment and resuscitation; or

 (b) suffering from suspected acute organ or system failure; or

 (c) suffering from an illness or injury where the viability or function of a body part or organ is acutely threatened; or

 (d) suffering from a drug overdose, toxic substance or toxin effect; or

 (e) experiencing severe psychiatric disturbance whereby the health of the patient or other people is at immediate risk; or

 (f) suffering acute severe pain where the viability or function of a body part or organ is suspected to be acutely threatened; or

 (g) suffering acute significant haemorrhage requiring urgent assessment and treatment.”.

4.   Regulation 31 (Validity of referrals to specialists or consultant physicians)

4.1   Subregulation (3):

After “subregulation 30 (2)”, insert “ or subregulation 30 (4)”.

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NOTES

1. Notified in the Commonwealth of Australia Gazette on 26 October 1995.

2. Statutory Rules 1975 No. 80 as amended by 1975 Nos. 118, 125 and 135 (disallowed by the Senate on 4 September 1975); 1976 Nos. 202, 214 and 215; 1977 Nos. 26 and 44; 1978 Nos. 95 and 177; 1979 No. 230; 1981 Nos. 198 and 317; 1982 Nos. 157, 251 and 287; 1983 Nos. 106, 231, 253 and 255; 1984 Nos. 5 and 162; 1985 Nos. 36, 50, 95, 205 and 290; 1986 Nos. 19, 20, 87 and 326; 1987 Nos. 32, 163 and 166; 1988 No. 314; 1989 Nos. 6, 54, 117 and 293; 1990 No. 25; 1991 Nos. 82, 314, 365 and 441; 1992 Nos. 42, 111, 239, 335 and 431; 1993 Nos. 106, 130 and 154; 1994 Nos. 20, 27, 111, 137, 138, 328 and 413; 1995 Nos. 9 and 25.