The Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) is a list of health professional services (items) that the Australian Government subsidises. MBS items provide patient benefits for a wide range of health services including consultations, diagnostic tests, therapy, and operations.
When changes are made to MBS items, a review is undertaken approximately 24 months after to analyse and examine the performance of the changes. This is called a post implementation review. Post implementation...More
Consultation period extended until 29 September 2023.
In August 2019 the Australia and New Zealand Ministerial Forum on Food Regulation (now the Food Ministers’ Meeting) asked the Food Regulation Standing Committee to consider options to improve the composition of the food supply in relation to trans fats.
This consultation has been prepared by the Food Regulation Standing Committee (FRSC) to support consideration of regulatory and non-regulatory options for...More
The Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) is a list of health professional services (items) that the Australian Government subsidises. MBS items provide patient benefits for a wide range of health services including consultations, diagnostic tests, therapy, and operations.
When changes are made to MBS items, a review is undertaken approximately 24 months after to analyse and examine the performance of the changes. This is called a post implementation review. Post...More
Australia is participating in two important processes to strengthen the international community’s capacity to prevent, prepare for, and respond to, pandemics and other international health emergencies:
the negotiation of a new international legal instrument on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response, and
targeted changes to the International Health Regulations (2005) (IHR) through the World Health Organization (WHO).
To date, Member States...More
One of the top 3 regulatory science priorities identified at our office planning day was to “retain and resource access to the full range of scientific literature”. With this priority in mind, the following short survey is designed to gain a better understanding of how the office accesses, uses and stores scientific journal articles, with the aim of improving the way this is currently done.
More
The Australian Government values the contributions of people with lived and/or living experiences of mental ill-health, including families, carers and kin. Their stories continue to drive improvements to the mental health system and services.
On 30 January 2023, the Government announced $7.5 million in funding to establish and operate two new independent mental health lived experience peak bodies:
one representing consumers; and
one...More
The Australian Government values the contributions of people with lived and/or living experiences of mental ill-health. Their stories continue to drive improvements to the mental health system and services.
On 30 January 2023, the Government announced $7.5 million in funding to establish and operate two new independent mental health lived experience peak bodies:
one representing consumers; and
one representing families, carers and kin. ...More
Under the Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP) grant agreement, Sector Support and Development (SSD) providers are required to submit a Performance Report to the Department of Health and Aged Care (Department) bi-annually.
This performance report will be used to gather information that may inform future policy and analyse demand for services as aged care reforms are implemented. It is no t intended to communicate changes to SSD policy.
...More
Background information from the Shigella SoNG Working Group is required to progress document development that is consistent with the needs of as many jurisdictions as possible.
More
In February 2023, the Strengthening Medicare Taskforce Report outlined priority recommendations to improve primary care. One of these was that the Australian Government work together with states and territories to explore the barriers and incentives for all health practitioners to work to their full scope of practice.
In April 2023, National Cabinet supported this recommendation. As part of the 2023-24 Budget, the Government provided funding for a review of the scope of...More
Overview of Reporting on CHSP Ad Hoc Funding
The CHSP Ad Hoc Proposals grant was published under Grant Opportunity GO5672 (for financial year 2022-2023) as an extension of the Grant Opportunity GO4265 (for financial years 2020-2021 and 2021-2022).
Funding provided through the CHSP Ad Hoc Proposals grant enabled organisations to respond to unforeseen and exceptional circumstances, address gaps in service delivery and trial and implement new and innovative service...More
In February 2023 the Minister for Health and Aged Care released the Strengthening Medicare Taskforce Report . The report recommended that the government:
Modernise My Health Record to significantly increase health information available to consumers and their health care professionals, including by requiring sharing by default for private and public practitioners and services, and make it easier for people and their health care teams to use at the point of care.
...More
A NATIONAL CONSUMER ENGAGEMENT STRATEGY FOR HEALTH AND WELLBEING: This Strategy is designed to strengthen partnerships between health policy makers and the community, as set out in one of the immediate priorities for action under the National Preventive Health Strategy 2021-2030. The purpose of this Strategy is to mobilise a person-centred prevention system by involving communities and consumers in preventive health policy design and implementation in order to enable and support a more...More
We are seeking feedback from stakeholders on the PricewaterhouseCoopers' (PwC) report and recommendations on the proposed reforms to Part B of the Prescribed List of Benefits for Medical Devices and Human Tissue Products* (the PL), and the proposed restructure of Part B.
The report outlines a way forward agreed between the department and key stakeholders in terms of the new structure of Part B, and the listing process to be used for new products, and also includes amendments to...More
The Department of Health and Aged Care is seeking information from aged care providers on the design of residential aged care accommodation.
The Stocktake on the Design of Residential Aged Care Accommodation (‘stocktake’) will help the department to understand what residential aged care accommodation looks like from a design perspective. This information will be used to develop a picture of aged care homes, including where services are provided flexibly, in terms...More
Independent studies were announced in the 2020-21 and 2021-22 Budgets and covered the following:
The effectiveness of the regulatory settings for the Medicare Levy Surcharge (MLS), Rebate, and Lifetime Health Cover (LHC) (collectively referred to as the PHI Incentives); and
Hospital Default Benefits.
The aim of these studies is to identify opportunities to improve the affordability and quality of PHI cover for consumers to access private...More
The purpose of this paper is to provide stakeholders information about:
proposed compliance and assurance measures; and
proposed measures to promote information sharing among government agencies about medical devices and human tissue products included in the Prescribed List .
As part of this consultation, we invited stakeholders to attend an information webinar on Tuesday 1 August 2023, where we discussed the proposed measures, answered...More
Microbial genomics is the application of genome sequencing technologies to characterise and analyse pathogens for the purposes of informing clinical and public health investigation and response to communicable disease outbreaks. The implementation of this technology is rapidly transforming the Australian pathology sector and its accelerated implementation to support the COVID-19 response, provides a unique opportunity to leverage its value in understanding and controlling other...More
The program provides information sessions to contracted service providers and industry groups. We welcome feedback to help improve these sessions.
More
The purpose of this consultation is to seek feedback from stakeholders on the draft Guide to prepare an application to the Prescribed List of Benefits for Medical Devices and Human Tissue Products (the Guide).
The Guide will assist applicants to prepare an application to list a product on the Prescribed List of Benefits for Medical Devices and Human Tissue Products (the PL), or to amend an existing billing code.
The draft Guide refers to links and other...More
The Australian Government is developing a National Health and Climate Strategy.
The strategy aims to protect the health and wellbeing of Australians from the effects of climate change. To do this, it is important for the Australian Government to:
reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the health system
make the health system more resilient to the impacts of climate change
support communities to take action against the health effects of...More
The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) is consulting with stakeholders on proposed changes to the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination recommendations in the Australian Immunisation Handbook, with an intention to submit the recommendation to the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) for its approval under section 14A of the National Health and Medical Research Council Act 1992.
The draft recommendations and the rationale for the...More
The Australian Government is committed to ensuring health and medical research investment delivers the greatest benefit to the community while driving long-term economic sustainability.
To optimise the government’s investment in health and medical research, the Department of Health and Aged Care and National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) are undertaking national consultation to improve alignment and coordination between the Medical Research Future Fund...More
We are analysing your feedback
Visit this page again soon for the outcomes to this public consultation.
Public Consultation on the Exposure Draft
On 30 November 2022 the Hon. Mark Butler MP Minister for Health and Aged Care announced tobacco reforms. These reforms bring together current legislation and introduce new measures to reduce tobacco prevalence. The Australian Government is now consulting on the exposure draft legislation for these reforms.
The...More
The National Diabetes Services Scheme (NDSS) provides subsidised access to a range of products for the self-management of diabetes. To ensure the products supplied under the NDSS continue to meet the needs of people registered with the scheme – and represent value-for-money for the Australian Government – the Department of Health and Aged Care is planning a tender process to refresh the NDSS Product Schedule.
The tender would allow new and existing product suppliers to...More
Ensuring Australians can live free from the impact of hepatitis B and hepatitis C is a priority of the Australian Government.
We are seeking your feedback on the draft Fourth National Hepatitis B Strategy 2023-2030 and the draft Sixth National Hepatitis C Strategy 2023-2030 (the Strategies).
These Strategies are part of the new draft national Blood Borne Viruses (BBV) and Sexually Transmissible Infections (STI) strategies that will build on the...More
Do you volunteer or work with volunteers in the aged care sector? Take part in our volunteering survey.
Volunteers are an important part of the aged care system freely giving their time, companionship, care, and support.
As part of the Australian Government’s response to the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety, the Department is currently seeking the views of:
all people who volunteer in the aged care sector, and
all those who work with volunteers...More
We are seeking feedback to inform the Review of the Marketing in Australia of Infant Formulas: Manufacturers and Importers Agreement (MAIF Agreement).
The MAIF Agreement is a voluntary, self-regulatory code of conduct between manufacturers and importers of infant formula products in Australia. The key objectives of the MAIF Agreement are to:
ensure safe and adequate nutrition for babies
encourage breastfeeding as the first option for babies
...More
The purpose of this consultation paper is to provide stakeholders with the opportunity to understand, in greater detail, the proposed cost recovery arrangements related to the renamed Prostheses List which are planned to commence on 1 July 2023. This includes details related to legislative changes required to enact the proposed cost recovery arrangements.
We ask that stakeholders provide feedback on the proposed cost recovery arrangements. This feedback will then be used to inform...More