Chris Ellison (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Human Services) Share this | Hansard source

By way of history, the object in the act that has been referred to was, I think, inserted in 1989 and related to premiums. I would put it to the committee that the Private Health Insurance Administration Council is a body which is a prudential regulator, not a price control agency. What the Labor amendment is purporting to do by inserting the words ‘minimising the level of health insurance premiums’ is control pricing. It is not the job of the Private Health Insurance Administration Council to control premiums. It has never had any control over premiums; that has been the responsibility of the minister.

The current position is that health funds have to apply directly to the minister to increase their premiums and the minister makes the decision. That is not PHIAC’s role, nor has it been in the past. So we believe this amendment proposes something which is beyond the role of PHIAC. The clause really is an anachronism, if you like, that was inserted in 1989. It has been in the objects and PHIAC has not had any power to deal with premiums. That has not been its role; it is a prudential regulator. For that reason the government opposes the amendment put by the opposition and the similar amendment moved by the Democrats.