Page 4725 - Week 15 - Tuesday, 13 December 2005
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Health Records (Privacy and Access) Amendment Bill 2005
Detail stage
Clause 1.
Debate resumed from 22 November 2005.
Clause 1 agreed to.
Remainder of bill, by leave, taken as a whole.
MR CORBELL (Molonglo—Minister for Health and Minister for Planning) (11.14): I seek leave to move amendments Nos 1 to 5 circulated in my name together.
Leave granted.
MR CORBELL: I move amendments Nos 1 to 5 circulated in my name together and table a supplementary statement to the amendments [see schedule at page 4783].
When we dealt with the in-principle stage of this debate in the last sitting I indicated to members that a number of minor amendments had been identified as necessary to confirm some misunderstandings and correct some poor wording in parts of the legislation. These amendments address those issues. I trust members have had an opportunity to look at them and that they are comfortable with the changes.
DR FOSKEY (Molonglo) (11.15): I support the government’s amendments and note that they have been prepared in response to concerns raised by the Scrutiny of Bills Committee. At a meeting of that committee I expressed concern about the fact that research that would enable access to health records was not governed by any public interest or ethical guidelines. Subsequently the committee’s report dealt quite carefully with those matters and I am pleased that the government has taken on board those concerns.
MR SMYTH (Brindabella—Leader of the Opposition) (11.16): The Opposition supports the government’s amendments. I thank the minister for his courtesy. As this is quite a short bill, debate on it could have concluded in the last sitting fortnight. However, the minister had some last minute amendments that he wished to make. He tabled those amendments and then said he would be quite happy for the bill to be debated this sitting week, obviously to give members time in which to look properly at those amendments and to consult with their colleagues. I thank the minister for his courtesy in that regard. As I said, the opposition supports these amendments.
Amendments agreed to.
Remainder of bill, as a whole, as amended, agreed to.
Bill, as amended, agreed to.
Sitting suspended from 11.17 to 2.30 pm.
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