Health Legislation Amendment (Improving Choice and Transparency for Private Health Consumers) Bill 2026

Senator RUSTON (South Australia—Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) (19:03): by leave—I record the coalition's support for the amendments, and I move amendments (1) and (2) on sheet 3817 together: (1) Schedule 1, item 1, page 4 (lines 34 to 36), omit subsection 124ZY(6), substitute: (6) The Minister may only specify a kind of information under paragraph (5)(a) if the Minister is satisfied that: (a) publishing that kind of information would further the objects of this Part; and (b) appropriate consultation in relation to publishing that kind of information has been undertaken with peak bodies representing: (i) health care professionals; and (ii) hospitals; and (iii) health insurers; and (iv) the interests of consumers of health care.

Note 1: Consultation for the purposes of paragraph (b) may include, for example, consultation with the Australian Medical Association, specialist medical colleges, the Australian Private Hospitals Association, Private Healthcare Australia and the Consumers Health Forum of Australia. Note 2: To avoid doubt, paragraph (b) does not limit section 17 of the Legislation Act 2003.

(2) Schedule 1, item 2, page 8 (lines 9 to 11), omit subsection 324-5(6), substitute: (6) The Minister may only specify a kind of information under paragraph (5)(a) if the Minister is satisfied that: (a) publishing that kind of information would further the objects of this Division; and (b) appropriate consultation in relation to publishing that kind of information has been undertaken with peak bodies representing: (i) health care professionals; and (ii) hospitals; and (iii) health insurers; and (iv) the interests of consumers of health care.

Note 1: Consultation for the purposes of paragraph (b) may include, for example, consultation with the Australian Medical Association, specialist medical colleges, the Australian Private Hospitals Association, Private Healthcare Australia and the Consumers Health Forum of Australia. Note 2: To avoid doubt, paragraph (b) does not limit section 17 of the Legislation Act 2003.

This provision requires that the minister can only make new categories of information to be published on their website after they have consulted with key stakeholders. To be quite frank, a lack of consultation has become almost a hallmark of this government. If the government choose not to support this amendment to the legislation, they would, in effect, be saying that they don't believe that they need to consult before they make a decision.

I don't know anybody who can make the best decision in the absence of actually speaking to the people that that decision is likely to impact. So we would urge the government to actually show that they are prepared to be transparent. It's all well and good to say you're going to be transparent, but if you're not even prepared to say that you will consult with the stakeholders before you make any changes to information that is going to be published before you speak to stakeholders then—it doesn't matter what you say—that is absolutely hiding, and it is not transparent.

It's pretty sad that we are now in a situation where we have to come into this place and seek to move amendments to require the government to consult on its own legislation and its own policymaking, but that's what we're having to do today. I commend this amendment to the chamber and hope that it passes, because I think that the only thing that will make our legislation better is if we have greater transparency, and part of that is actually having consultation instead of making decisions before you even speak to the people that this is going to impact upon.