AMA supports Hospital Pricing Authority
AMA President, Dr Steve Hambleton, said today that the creation of the Independent Hospital Pricing Authority would help to deliver greater transparency in public hospital funding.
The AMA submission on the National Health Reform Amendment (Independent Hospital Pricing Authority) Bill 2011 generally supports the proposed arrangements for the Authority, but recommends changes to strengthen and clarify the Authority’s functions and procedures.
“The new Independent Hospital Pricing Authority would be responsible for setting the efficient price for the Commonwealth’s contribution to public hospital services and for determining the Commonwealth’s payments for block funding,” Dr Hambleton said.
“The AMA supports this model which ensures that prices and costs for services provided by public hospitals are calculated and determined independently of governments and political interests, with significant input from medical practitioners and other clinicians.
“But these prices and costs must cover the reasonable expenses of providing effective, comprehensive, high-quality health services including teaching, training, research, service development, and quality improvement.
“The Authority must take into account the role of public hospitals in providing teaching and training and conducting research, and ensure these functions are appropriately supported.
“The Authority must also consider all the performance indicators that hospitals are required to achieve as mandated by COAG under the Performance and Accountability Framework.
“If hospitals are expected to perform to a certain standard, the national efficient price and the efficient cost must provide sufficient funding to achieve those standards.”
Dr Hambleton said that the Bill empowers the Authority to investigate and make recommendations on cost-shifting and cross-border disputes.
“AMA members working in public hospitals have experienced many examples of activities that could be interpreted as a State or Territory government cost-shifting to the Commonwealth,” he said.
“The Bill should allow for individuals or NGOs to report cost-shifting to the Authority.”
The AMA submission is available at http://ama.com.au/node/7165
13 September 2011
CONTACT: John Flannery 02 6270 5477 / 0419 494 761
Geraldine Kurukchi 02 6270 5467 / 0427 209 753
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