Chapter 1
The terms of the inquiry
Background to the inquiry
1.1
On 13 May 2010, the Senate referred to the Finance and Public
Administration References Committee for inquiry and report by 18 June 2010
(subsequently extended to 21 June and then 23 June 2010):
The key outcomes agreed by the
Commonwealth Government and five states and two territories at the Council of
Australian Governments (COAG) meeting on 19 April and 20 April 2010 and the process
of consultation between the states and Commonwealth prior to these agreements
and related matters, including but not limited to:
(a) the
new financial arrangements between the Commonwealth and states and territories
over the forward estimates and the conditional requirements upon the states for
receipt of additional Commonwealth funding;
(b) what
amounts of the $5.4 billion Commonwealth funding is new spending, what is
re-directed from existing programs/areas, the impact on these existing programs
and what savings are projected in existing health programs across the forward
estimates from these new financial arrangements, including the inputs,
assumptions and modelling underpinning these funding amounts;
(c) the
projected number of additional/new services this additional funding will
provide in elective surgery treatments, in emergency department treatments, in
expected numbers of patients to sign up to the diabetes spending measure, in
additional general practitioner (GP) treatments in aged care facilities,
including the inputs, assumptions and modelling underpinning these projections;
(d) the
$15.6 billion top-up payments guaranteed to the states by the Commonwealth in
the period 2014–15 to 2019–20, including exploring the breakdown of expenditure
relating to hospitals, outpatient services, capital expenditure, GP and primary
healthcare, aged care and other areas of health expenditure;
(e) the
names, roles, structures, operations, resourcing, funding and staffing of any
new statutory bodies, organisations or other entities needed to establish,
oversee, monitor, report upon or administer the National Health and Hospital
Networks, Primary Care Organisations and the funding channels to be established
under the COAG agreements;
(f) what
arrangements are in place, or are being negotiated for states that have not
signed up, nor fully signed up to the COAG agreements, including what
contingencies have been put in place for states that may want to alter
agreements in future;
(g) the
intent of the state and territory governments and their preferred number and
size of Local Hospital Networks in each state and territory;
(h) the
number of hospitals which will receive: activity-based funding, block grant
funding, or a mix of both;
(i) aged
care:
(i) the 2,500 new
aged care beds to be generated by zero interest loans,
(ii) the 2,000
beds for long stay older patients to be established,
(iii) the funding
for the above, and
(iv) the
establishment of the Commonwealth Government as responsible for full funding,
policy, management and delivery responsibility for a national aged care system;
(j) mental health matters; and
(k) any other related matter.
Conduct of the inquiry
1.2
The inquiry was advertised in The Australian and through the
Internet. The committee invited submission from the Commonwealth Government, state
and territory governments and interested organisations and individuals.
1.3
The committee received 37 public submissions. A list of individuals and
organisations that made public submissions to the inquiry together with other
information authorised for publication is at Appendix 1. The committee held two
days of hearings in Canberra on 7 June and Melbourne on 8 June 2010. Appendix 2
lists the names and organisations of those who appeared. Submissions,
additional information received including answers to questions on notice and
the Hansard transcript of evidence may be accessed through the committee's
website at: https://www.aph.gov.au/senate/committee/fapa_ctte/index.htm.
Acknowledgement
1.4
The committee thanks those organisations and individuals who made
submissions and gave evidence at the public hearing.
Structure of the report
1.5
The committee's report is structured as follows:
- Chapter 2 provides an overview of the COAG reforms relating to
health and hospitals;
- Chapter 3 considers the adequacy of the COAG health reforms and
looks at the first eight terms of reference;
- Chapter 4 examines term of reference (i) concerning aged care;
- Chapter 5 addresses term of reference (j) concerning mental
health matters;
- Chapter 6 considers term of reference (k) concerning any other
matters and considers issues including oral and dental health, Indigenous
health and the e-health initiative; and
- Chapter 7 contains the committee's conclusions.
Note on references
1.6
References to the Committee Hansard are to the proof Hansard: page
numbers may vary between the proof and the official Hansard.
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