13th Mar 2012, 6:35 PM – Senate Fairer Private Health Insurance Incentives Bill 2012 and related bills - Reference to Committee - Refer to the Economics Legislation Committee

The majority voted against a motion introduced by Liberal Senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells, which means that it was unsuccessful.

The motion was: "That the Fairer Private Health Insurance Incentives Bill 2012 and two related bills be referred to the Economics Legislation Committee." Senator Fierravanti-Wells explained that she introduced this motion because "this government has absolutely no mandate whatsoever to pass these bills".(Read Senator Fierravanti-Wells' full explanation of the motion and the related debate here. )

Background to the bills

The Fairer Private Health Insurance Incentives Bill 2012 was introduced along with the Fairer Private Health Insurance Incentives (Medicare Levy Surcharge) Bill 2012 and the Fairer Private Health Insurance Incentives (Medicare Levy Surcharge—Fringe Benefits) Bill 2012. These bills were introduced as a package to reduce the private health insurance rebate and increase the Medicare levy surcharge for certain taxpayers. To this end, the bills:

• create three private health insurance tiers with different levels of private health insurance rebate to reduce the amount of rebate eligible taxpayers with complying private health insurance are entitled to when their income for surcharge purposes is above the relevant Medicare levy surcharge threshold;(Read more about the Fairer Private Health Insurance Incentives Bill 2012 in its bills digest.

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• increase the rate of Medicare levy surcharge for certain taxpayers who do not have complying health insurance and whose income for surcharge purposes is above the relevant Medicare levy surcharge threshold;(Read more about the Fairer Private Health Insurance Incentives (Medicare Levy Surcharge) Bill 2012 in its bills digest.

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• increase the rate of Medicare levy surcharge for taxpayers who do not have complying health insurance and whose income (including reportable fringe benefits) for surcharge purposes is above the relevant Medicare levy surcharge threshold.(Read more about the Fairer Private Health Insurance Incentives (Medicare Levy Surcharge—Fringe Benefits) Bill 2012 in its bills digest.)