Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Health Administration) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate—

(a)

notes:

(i)

the Prime Minister’s stated commitment before the 2007 Federal election that Federal Labor would retain the ‘existing private health insurance rebates, including the 30 per cent general rebate and the 35 and 40 per cent rebates for older Australians’ as well as the commitment to ‘maintain Lifetime Health Cover and the Medicare Levy Surcharge’,

(ii)

the government’s reaffirmation of those commitments during its first Senate Estimates as the new government in February 2008, and on other occasions,

(iii)

revelations that since the election of the Rudd Government work has been done by both Treasury and the Department of Health and Ageing on options and/or recommendations for scrapping the private health insurance rebate and other options for change to the rebate and Lifetime Health Cover, and

(iv)

the departmental records listing for the Department of Health and Ageing for the period 1 July 2008 until 31 December 2008 listing six specific ideas and policy development papers on changes to private health insurance in general and Lifetime Health Cover in particular;

(b)

considers publication of those policy development ideas to be in the public interest; and

(c)

orders that there be laid on the table by the Minister Representing the Minister for Health and Ageing by no later than 12 pm on 16 March, the following documents:

(i)

2008/039344 CARE & ACCESS – POLICY – Development – Private Health Insurance Reforms 2008 – Ideas Paper – ACPHI,

(ii)

2008/043077 CARE & ACCESS – POLICY – Development – Private Health Insurance Reforms 2008 – Ideas Paper – Pt2 – ACPHI,

(iii)

2008/048024 CARE & ACCESS – POLICY – Development – Private Health Insurance Reforms 2008 – Ideas Paper – Pt3 – ACPHI,

(iv)

2008/058144 CARE & ACCESS – POLICY – Development – Private Health Insurance Reforms 2008 – Ideas Paper – Pt4 – ACPHI,

(v)

2008/066297 CARE & ACCESS – POLICY – Development – Private Health Insurance Reforms 2008 – Policy Development & Implementation (PD&I) Section – ACPHI, and

(vi)

2008/021657 CARE & ACCESS – POLICY – Development – Lifetime Health Cover (LHC) – Loading Waiver Provision – Private Health Insurance Act 2007 – ACPHI.

Question agreed to.