Page 3191 - Week 08 - Wednesday, 22 August 2012
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Secondly, concerns were raised that insurers will reap massive profits. I am advised the CTP regulator has not permitted the NRMA’s profit to increase since the inception of the 2008 act, notwithstanding the NRMA’s monopoly position. Further, the New South Wales data show that medical and rehabilitation expenditure under that scheme is more than double that which is paid under the ACT scheme. By contrast, the proportion of claims for non-economic loss and legal fees expenditure in the New South Wales scheme is almost half of that of the scheme in the ACT.
The government has considered the committee’s report carefully. Many of the committee’s recommendations make sense, and we have agreed, fully or in principle, with those recommendations.
Some of the committee’s recommendations reflect activities and processes the government has been undertaking for a number of years and will continue to undertake as a matter of course. These include monitoring developments in CTP schemes in New South Wales and the other jurisdictions, recommendation 6; communication activities to publicise and educate on the features of the existing CTP arrangements, recommendation 2; and activities to promote road safety in the ACT, including supporting vision zero within the ACT transport system, recommendation 12. Members will recall in this context that on 15 November last year Mr Corbell tabled the ACT road safety strategy 2011-20 and the road safety action plan 2011-13.
Other recommendations raised useful suggestions, and the government welcomes them. It is particularly pleasing to see strong support in recommendations for the early payment of up to $5,000 of medical expenses, as introduced by part 3 of the 2008 CTP act, and for this to be more widely promoted in addition to being made more flexible. Notwithstanding the views of some at the time who suggested that this reform was unnecessary, it appears that it has been successful in starting a reform process. But the premium increases over recent years indicate that further reform is needed.
As to government information, for the information of members, approximately 300,000 brochures about the availability of early payments were distributed through Canberra Connect shopfronts and posted out with all registration renewals in 2009-10. Nevertheless, the government accepts the committee’s suggestion, and the Treasury Directorate will seek the active cooperation of NRMA Insurance and ACT medical practitioners to publicise this scheme and its benefits further. The government would welcome it if those of our legal community who take out advertising space could promote the scheme as well,
With regard to recommendations 7 and 8 concerning the NDIS and NIIS, the public accounts committee has asked the government to advise how we propose to address lifetime care, either in the context of the NDIS or NIIS, or as a stand-alone ACT scheme. As members would be aware, the ACT has been chosen as a launch site for the NDIS and in this context I am pleased to advise members of the government’s continued commitment to introduce no-fault, lifetime care into the territory through this important initiative. We will continue to work to explore and develop these arrangements, including the NIIS, in conjunction with other jurisdictions to progress these important reforms.
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