Australian Government

Australian Participants in British Nuclear Tests (Treatment) Act 2006

treatment principles (Australian Participants in British Nuclear Tests) 2006 (Rehabilitation Appliance Program) Amendment instrument 2014

Instrument 2014 No. R3

Name

[1] This instrument is the Treatment Principles (Australian Participants in British Nuclear Tests) 2006 (Rehabilitation Appliance Program) Amendment Instrument 2014.

Commencement

[2] This instrument commences immediately after the commencement of the Veterans’ Entitlements (Treatment Principles – Rehabilitation Appliance Program) Amendment Instrument 2014.

Note: the Veterans’ Entitlements (Treatment Principles – Rehabilitation Appliance Program) Amendment Instrument 2014 commences on the day after it is registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.

Transitional

[3] A process in train under:

(a) the Treatment Principles (under the Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986) as the Treatment Principles apply to a person eligible for treatment under the Australian Participants in British Nuclear Tests (Treatment) Act 2006 (e.g. claim for payment, request for treatment); or

(b) the Treatment Principles (under the Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986) as modified by the Treatment Principles (Australian Participants in British Nuclear Tests) 2006 (e.g. claim for payment, request for treatment);

immediately before:

(c) for paragraph (a) — the commencement of the Veterans’ Entitlements (Treatment Principles – Rehabilitation Appliance Program) Amendment Instrument 2014;

(d) for paragraph (b) — the commencement of this instrument;

is to be finalised under:

(e) for paragraph (a) — the Treatment Principles (under the Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986) as if they had not been varied by the Veterans’ Entitlements (Treatment Principles – Rehabilitation Appliance Program) Amendment Instrument 2014;

(f) for paragraph (b) — the Treatment Principles (Australian Participants in British Nuclear Tests) 2006 as if they had not been varied by this instrument.

Schedule

VARIATIONS TO THE Treatment Principles (Australian Participants in British Nuclear Tests) 2006

Note 1: this Schedule is varying the modifications in the Schedule to the Treatment Principles (Australian Participants in British Nuclear Tests) 2006.

Note 2: the Treatment Principles (Australian Participants in British Nuclear Tests) 2006 modify the Treatment Principles under the Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986 in their application to eligible persons under the Australian Participants in British Nuclear Tests (Treatment) Act 2006.

1. Item 4 - substituted paragraph 1.4.1

insert:

“assistive communication device” means an object that enhances the ability of a person with complex communication needs to communicate and includes items such as:

• communication books or boards
• speech generating devices
• modified personal computers
• computerised devices, which may include a keyboard and screen display and which may incorporate synthetic speech, memory functions, and word prediction facilities
• devices commonly known as computer tablets and smart `phones.

“speech pathologist”, for the purposes of the Principles, is a person who:

(a) has been trained to assess and treat people who have complex communication needs; and

(b) has a provider number (i.e. “registered” with the Department of Human Services); and

(c) is not a disqualified health care provider in the terms mentioned in paragraph 7.1B of the VEA TPs.

Note: under VEA TP 7.1B a disqualified health care provider is a person whose services would not, under section 19B of the Health Insurance Act 1973, attract a medicare benefit.

“VEA TPs” means the Treatment Principles under the Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986 as they apply, unmodified, to an eligible person under the Act.

“Vertical Platform Lift” means a lift installed adjacent to vertical walls, which travels up and down, with the platform finishing flat against the floor, and the user embarking/disembarking onto an even surface.

2. Item 4 - substituted paragraph 1.4.1 (definition of “in force on the date in Schedule 1”)

substitute:

“in force on the date in Schedule 1”, in a reference in the Principles to a document, means that the version of the document as it exists on the date in Schedule 1 for the document is the version in the reference.

3. Item 4 - substituted paragraph 1.4.1 (definition of “White Card”)

substitute:

"White Card" means the identification card provided by the Department to a person who is eligible under the Act for treatment, subject to these Principles, for malignant neoplasia;

4. Item 47

after this item, insert:

47A. Paragraph 11.3.1(c)

substitute:

(c) the supply of special vehicle driving controls and devices, if the entitled person owns the vehicle and is licensed under relevant State or Territory law to drive a modified vehicle;

5. Item 48

 substitute:

48. Paragraph 11.3.2

substitute:

Assistive Communication Devices

11.3.2  Subject to paragraph 11.1.3 (clinical need, cost effective etc), the Commission may accept financial responsibility for the provision to an entitled person of an assistive communication device.

11.3.3  Where the assistive communication device is a computer tablet or smart `phone, the Commission may only accept financial responsibility for the device if:

(a) the entitled person has been clinically assessed by a speech pathologist as having complex communication needs that would be significantly met by a computer tablet or smart `phone; and

(b) in the case of a smart `phone — the entitled person’s communication needs:

(i) could not be reasonably satisfied by the provision of a computer tablet; or

(ii) are not being reasonably satisfied by the use of a computer tablet; and

(c) the computer tablet or smart `phone has been preloaded with a speech pathology application; and

(d) the Commission considers all relevant guidelines in relation to the provision of an assistive communication device that is a computer tablet or a `smart phone as set out in the RAP National Schedule of Equipment and the Rehabilitation Appliances Program (RAP) National Guidelines.

Note: the repair and replacement of rehabilitation appliances is covered by VEA TP 11.7.

6. Items 49-52 (inclusive)

omit.

7. Item 59

substitute:

Item 59. Schedule 1

substitute:

The date for :

1. Notes for Local Medical Officers (paragraph 1.4.1);

2. Department of Veterans’ Affairs Fee Schedules for Medical Services (paragraph 3.5.1);

3. Notes for Allied Health Providers (paragraphs 3.5.1 and 7.1A.1);

4. Optometrist Fees for Consultation (paragraph 3.5.1);

5. DVA Schedule of Fees Orthoptists (paragraph 3.5.1);

6. Pricing Schedule for Visual Aids (paragraph 3.5.1);

7. ...

8. Fee Schedule of Dental Services for Dentists and Dental Specialists (paragraph 3.5.1);

9. Fee Schedule of Dental Services for Dental Prosthetists (paragraph 3.5.1);

 10. Chiropractors Schedule of Fees (paragraph 3.5.1);

11. Diabetes Educators Schedule of Fees (paragraph 3.5.1);

12. Dietitians Schedule of Fees (paragraph 3.5.1);

13. Exercise Physiologists Schedule of Fees (paragraph 3.5.1);

14. Occupational Therapists Schedule of Fees (paragraph 3.5.1);

15. Osteopaths Schedule of Fees (paragraph 3.5.1);

16. Physiotherapists Schedule of Fees (paragraph 3.5.1);

17. Psychologists Schedule of Fees (paragraph 3.5.1);

18. Podiatrists Schedule of Fees (paragraph 3.5.1);

19. Social Workers Schedule of Fees (paragraph 3.5.1);

20. Clinical Counsellors Schedule of Fees (paragraph 3.5.1);

21. Speech Pathologists Schedule of Fees (paragraph 3.5.1);

22. Australian Government Department of Veterans’ Affairs Classification System and Schedule of Item Numbers and Fees — Community Nursing Services;

23. ...

24. Rehabilitation Appliances Program (RAP) National Guidelines (paragraph 11.2A.1);

25. RAP National Schedule of Equipment (paragraph 11.2A.1);

is 1 April 2014.