Ministerial directions

On 29 January 2020, the Independent Health and Aged Care Pricing Authority (IHACPA) received a Ministerial Direction from the Hon. Greg Hunt under section 226(1) of the National Health Reform Act 2011.

The Direction requires that IHACPA study existing and projected costs for Nationally Funded Centres (NFC) Program services, and to recommend options regarding: 

• whether NFC services, individually and collectively, are more appropriately funded via Activity Based Funding (ABF) or block funding arrangements under the National Health Reform Agreement
• the development and operation of cost models and pricing models for the NFC Program, covering both existing and potential future services delivered under the NFC Program.

In issuing this Direction, the Minister consulted with the Council of Australian Governments' Health Council (CHC).

IHACPA will work with states and territories to provide an interim report about the study and options to the Australian Health Ministers' Advisory Council no later than 1 August 2020, and a final report to CHC no later than 31 January 2021.

More information

For any enquiries, please contact enquiries.ihacpa@ihacpa.gov.au.

Links

• View the full Ministerial Direction online
• Download the full Ministerial Direction document

On 16 February 2017 IHACPA received a Ministerial Direction from the Hon. Greg Hunt under section 226(1) of the National Health Reform Act 2011.

The Direction requires that IHACPA undertake implementation of agreed recommendations of the COAG Health Council on pricing for safety and quality to give effect to:

1. nil funding for a public hospital episode including a sentinel event which occurs on or after 1 July 2017, applying to all relevant episodes of care (being admitted and other episodes) in hospitals where the services are funded on an activity basis and hospitals where services are block funded; and
2. an appropriate reduced funding level for all hospital acquired complications, in accordance with Option 3 of the draft Pricing Framework for Australian Public Hospital Services 2017-18, as existing on 30 November 2016, to reflect the additional cost of a hospital admission with a hospital acquired complication, to be applied across all public hospitals; and
3. undertake further public consultation to inform a future pricing and funding approach in relation to avoidable hospital readmissions, based on a set of definitions to be developed by the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care.

IHACPA will incorporate the requirements under this Direction into the final Pricing Framework for Australian Public Hospitals 2017-18 due to be published on the IHACPA website in early March 2017.

IHACPA will undertake further consultation as part of its annual consultation process on the draft Pricing Framework for Australian Public Hospitals 2018-19 due for publication in June 2017 and provide a report back to the COAG Health Council by 30 November 2017.

Note: This follows on from a Direction received on 29 August 2016 which required IHACPA to provide advice to the COAG Health Council on options for pricing for safety and quality.

More information

For any questions, please contact enquiries.ihacpa@ihacpa.gov.au

Links

• View the full Ministerial Direction online

On 29 August 2016 IHACPA received a Ministerial Direction from the Hon. Sussan Ley, under section 226 of the National Health Reform Act 2011.

The Direction requires IHACPA to provide advice to the Commonwealth and states and territories on options for developing:

• a comprehensive and risk-adjusted model to determine how funding and pricing can be used to improve patient outcomes and reduce the amount the Commonwealth pays for sentinel events, and a set of preventable hospital acquired conditions, defined by the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care and agreed by the Parties, that occur in public hospitals; and
• a comprehensive and risk-adjusted strategy and funding model to reduce avoidable readmissions to hospital that will adjust the funding to hospitals that exceed a predetermined avoidable readmission rate for an agreed set of conditions and the circumstances in which they occur.

IHACPA must provide advice to the COAG Health Council regarding options by 30 November 2016.

IHACPA will undertake a consultation process regarding options for pricing and funding for safety and quality as part of its annual consultation process on the draft Pricing Framework for Australian Public Hospitals due for publication 30 September 2016. The consultation paper will be published on IHACPA’s website.

All interested parties are encouraged to provide feedback as part of this process.

More information

For any questions, please contact enquiries.ihacpa@ihacpa.gov.au

Links

• View the full Ministerial Direction online
• Download the full Ministerial Direction document.