National Registration and Accreditation Scheme
The Council of Australian Governments (COAG), at its meeting of 26 March 2008, signed an Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) committing the states, territories and the Commonwealth to establish a single national registration and accreditation scheme for health practitioners.
COAG has agreed that the scheme will be operational by 1 July 2010.
These national arrangements to be established under the state and territory legislation will replace the current state and territory statutory registration boards, including the Victorian scheme, and will initially apply to the ten health professions that are subject to statutory registration in all jurisdictions:
- Chiropractors
- Dental care providers (dentists, dental hygienists, dental therapists and dental prosthetists)
- Medical practitioners
- Nurses
- Optometrists
- Osteopaths
- Pharmacists
- Physiotherapists
- Podiatrists
- Psychologists
In July 2012, the partially regulated professions, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health work, Chinese medicine, medical radiation and occupational therapy, will be transitioning to the national scheme.
The new arrangement will help health professionals move around the country more easily, reduce red tape, provide greater safeguards for the public and promote a more flexible, responsive and sustainable health workforce. For example, the new scheme will maintain a public national register for each health profession that will ensure that a professional who has been banned from practising in one place is unable to practise elsewhere in Australia.
An adoption of laws model has been chosen to give effect to the scheme with Queensland the lead jurisdiction. Following referral of the scheme by COAG to Health Ministers, the National Registration and Accreditation Implementation Project (NRAIP) team, headed by Dr Louise Morauta, Project Director, will implement the scheme of behalf of Health Ministers.
The legislation to pass the national scheme will be introduced in three stages:
Stage 1
On 25 November 2008, the first piece of legislation to establish the scheme, the Health Practitioner Regulation (Administrative Arrangements) National Law Act 2008 received Royal Assent in Queensland. The Act establishes the structural elements of the national scheme, including conferring the National Agency and National Boards with limited functions and powers.
Stage 2
The second piece of legislation (Bill B) will contain substantive provisions of the scheme, the essential powers and functions of the boards with respect to registration and accreditation and is expected to be passed by the Queensland Parliament by October 2009.
Stage 3
The final stage involves the preparation and passage of State and Territory adoption bills (Bill C) to enable the operation of the scheme within each jurisdiction by December 2009. Bill C will detail provisions that repeal existing state registration Acts, and transitional provisions to give effect to the national scheme. Amendment of relevant Commonwealth legislation will also be required.
As part of the second stage of the process, there has been significant consultation thus far with stakeholders on matters pertaining to registration, accreditation, complaints and discipline, privacy and information sharing, other matters for inclusion in Bill B, partially regulated professions, and arrangements for specialists.
On 8 May 2009, Health Ministers reached agreement on how the national scheme will operate. The matters agreed on are reflected in the exposure draft of the second Bill released on 12 June 2009. A copy of the Bill and details regarding the timeframes for the call for submissions can be found on the NRAIP website. One of the decisions reached by Health Ministers is that the location of the national office will be in Melbourne.
Further information on the implementation of the national registration and accreditation scheme will be posted on this website, as it becomes available.
- 'Design of new National Registration and Accreditation Scheme - 8 May 2009' communiqué
- 'COAG Communiqué - 26th March 2008'
- 'Intergovernmental Agreement for a National Registration and Accreditation Scheme for Health Professionals'
The above documents can be downloaded from the NRAIP website.
Council of Australian Government announcements
The 13 April 2007 and 14 July 2006 COAG communiqués are available from the COAG website.
Legislation
The Health Practitioner Regulation (Administrative Arrangements) National Law Bill 2008 can be downloaded from the Office of the Queensland Parliamentary Counsel
Contact: For more information, please contact practitioner.regulation@dhs.vic.gov.au or phone (03) 9096 9960