Health Legislation Amendment (eHealth) Act 2015 (157 of 2015)

Schedule 1   Healthcare identifiers and health records

Part 1   Amendments

Healthcare Identifiers Act 2010

31   Section 9A

Repeal the section, substitute:

9A Classes of healthcare provider that may be assigned a healthcare identifier by the service operator

Healthcare identifiers for individual healthcare providers

(1) The service operator may, under paragraph 9(1)(a), assign a healthcare identifier to an individual healthcare provider if:

(a) the individual healthcare provider is registered by a registration authority as a member of a health profession; or

(b) the individual healthcare provider is a member of a professional association that:

(i) relates to the healthcare that has been, is, or is to be, provided by the member; and

(ii) has uniform national membership requirements, whether or not in legislation.

Healthcare identifiers for a healthcare provider organisation that is a seed organisation, or is not part of a network

(2) The service operator may, under paragraph 9(1)(a), assign a healthcare identifier to a healthcare provider organisation that is a seed organisation for a network, or that is not part of a network, if:

(a) at least one of the employees of the organisation is an individual who:

(i) is an identified healthcare provider; and

(ii) provides healthcare as part of his or her duties; and

(b) one, and only one of the employees of the organisation is the responsible officer for the organisation; and

(c) either:

(i) the organisation has at least one other employee who is an organisation maintenance officer for the organisation; or

(ii) the responsible officer for the organisation is also the organisation maintenance officer for the organisation.

Healthcare identifiers for network organisations

(3) The service operator may, under paragraph 9(1)(a), assign a healthcare identifier to a healthcare provider organisation that is a network organisation within a network if:

(a) the seed organisation for the network:

(i) has been assigned a healthcare identifier that has not been retired; and

(ii) does not object to the network organisation being assigned a healthcare identifier under this subsection; and

(b) the responsible officer for the seed organisation for the network is also the responsible officer for every network organisation within the network; and

(c) there is an organisation maintenance officer for the network organisation; and

(d) the organisation maintenance officer for the network organisation is:

(i) an employee of the network organisation (the first network organisation ); or

(ii) an employee of the seed organisation for the network; or

(iii) an employee of another network organisation within the network that is hierarchically superior to the first network organisation.

What is a network of healthcare provider organisations?

(4) A network of healthcare provider organisations is a group of healthcare provider organisations each of which satisfies one of the following criteria:

(a) the healthcare provider organisation is part of, or subordinate to, another healthcare provider organisation within the group;

(b) another healthcare provider organisation within the group is part of, or subordinate to, the healthcare provider organisation.

What is the seed organisation for a network?

(5) A healthcare provider organisation is the seed organisation for a network if:

(a) there is at least one other healthcare provider organisation that is part of, or subordinate to, the organisation; and

(b) the organisation is not itself part of, or subordinate to, another healthcare provider organisation.

What is a network organisation within a network?

(6) A healthcare provider organisation is a network organisation within a network if it is part of, or subordinate to, another healthcare provider organisation within the network.

Responsible officers

(7) A person is the responsible officer for a healthcare provider organisation if the duties of the person include the following:

(a) nominating the organisation maintenance officer or officers for the organisation to the service operator;

(b) requesting the assignment or retirement of a healthcare identifier for the organisation;

(c) if there is a network organisation of the organisation:

(i) nominating the organisation maintenance officer for the network organisation to the service operator; and

(ii) requesting the assignment or retirement of a healthcare identifier for the network organisation;

(d) if the organisation is part of a merger or acquisition - requesting the merger or reconfiguration of a healthcare identifier for the organisation.

Organisation maintenance officers

(8) A person is an organisation maintenance officer for a healthcare provider organisation if the duties of the person include the following:

(a) nominating to the service operator at least one additional person to be an organisation maintenance officer of the organisation, if required;

(b) maintaining information that is held by the service operator about the organisation;

(c) providing current details to the service operator about the organisation for inclusion in the Healthcare Provider Directory;

(d) providing any other information requested by the service operator about the organisation for which the organisation maintenance officer is responsible;

(e) if the organisation (the seed organisation ) has a network organisation:

(i) nominating to the service operator another person who meets the employment criteria in paragraph (3)(d) to be the organisation maintenance officer for the network organisation - either on the initiative of the seed organisation or if required by the service operator to do so;

(ii) requesting the assignment or retirement of a healthcare identifier for the network organisation;

(iii) maintaining information that is held by the service operator about the network organisation;

(iv) providing current details to the service operator about the network organisation for inclusion in the Healthcare Provider Directory;

(v) providing any other information requested by the service operator about the network organisation for which the organisation maintenance officer is responsible;

(vi) if the network organisation is part of a merger or acquisition - requesting the merger or reconfiguration of a healthcare identifier for the organisation.

Sole practitioners

(9) The service operator may assign a healthcare identifier under paragraph 9(1)(a) to a healthcare provider organisation that is a sole practitioner even though subsection (2) is not satisfied, if the sole practitioner:

(a) provides healthcare as part of his or her duties; and

(b) performs the duties of a responsible officer and organisation maintenance officer.

Duties of the responsible officer performed by another person

(10) For the purposes of subsection (7), a person does not cease to be a responsible officer for a healthcare provider organisation if a duty mentioned in subsection (7) is performed by another employee of the organisation on behalf of the person.