Introduction
Duties of the committee
1.1
The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial
Services (the committee) is established by Part 14 of the Australian
Securities and Investments Commission Act 2001 (the ASIC Act). Section 243 of the ASIC Act sets out the
committee's duties as follows:
- to
inquire into, and report to both Houses on:
-
activities of ASIC or the Takeovers Panel, or matters connected with
such activities, to which, in the Parliamentary Committee’s opinion, the
Parliament’s attention should be directed; or
-
the operation of the corporations legislation (other than the excluded
provisions); or
-
the operation of any other law of the Commonwealth, or any law of a
State or Territory, that appears to the Parliamentary Committee to affect
significantly the operation of the corporations legislation (other than the
excluded provisions); or
-
the operation of any foreign business law, or of any other law of a
foreign country, that appears to the Parliamentary Committee to affect significantly
the operation of the corporations legislation (other than the excluded
provisions); and
- to
examine each annual report that is prepared by a body established by this Act
and of which a copy has been laid before a House, and to report to both Houses
on matters that appear in, or arise out of, that annual report and to which, in
the Parliamentary Committee’s opinion, the Parliament’s attention should be
directed; and
- to
inquire into any question in connection with its duties that is referred to it by
a House, and to report to that House on that question.[1]
Terms of reference
1.2
On 27 March 2018, the House of Representatives referred an inquiry into options
for greater involvement by private sector life insurers in worker
rehabilitation for report by 20 September 2018. The terms of reference are
as follows:
Options for greater involvement by private sector life
insurers in worker rehabilitation, including support after return to work, with
particular reference to the following:
- the interaction of Income
Protection (IP) insurance and Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) insurance
with State, Territory, and Commonwealth legislative and regulatory frameworks
including Medicare, government employment schemes, workers compensation
arrangements, national injury insurance schemes, the National Disability
Insurance Scheme, and private health insurance;
- the interaction of IP and
TPD insurance products with social security benefits in the context of the Life
Insurance Act 1995, Health Insurance Act 1973 and Private Health
Insurance (Prudential Supervision) Act 2015;
- how benefits available under
continuous disability policies, such as TPD, could be utilised to provide
assistance and incentives to people returning to work, such as covering the
cost of professional nursing care and other rehabilitation related expenses,
including:
- whether there are any legal
impediments to this; and
- whether there are any
identifiable limits to this, for example with respect to cover arrangements for
small business employees and the self-employed;
- the current definitions,
standards, and requirements claimants must meet to access services and
payments, including waiting periods or prerequisites;
- the consistency and
transparency of IP and TPD insurance definitions, policies, and disclosure documents
in the context of other rehabilitation schemes; and
- information available to
consumers about IP and TPD insurance in the context of other rehabilitation
schemes.[2]
Conduct of the inquiry
1.3
The committee advertised the inquiry on its webpage and invited
submissions from a range of relevant stakeholders. The committee set a closing
date for submissions of 4 May 2018.
1.4
The committee also resolved to inform submitters via the inquiry webpage
that:
-
the committee welcomes individual stories that may identify
widespread issues and recommendations for reform; and
-
the committee is not able to investigate or resolve individual
disputes
Submissions
1.5
The committee received 20 submissions and one supplementary submission as
detailed in Appendix 1. The committee also received answers to questions taken
on notice as listed in Appendix 1.
Hearings
1.6
The committee held the following public hearings:
-
19 June 2018 in Canberra; and
-
21 August 2018 in Canberra.
1.7
A list of witnesses who gave evidence at the public hearing is in
Appendix 2.
Structure of this report
1.8
The structure of this report is as follows:
-
This chapter provides the administrative details of the inquiry.
-
Chapter 2 provides context for the inquiry and outlines the
proposal for life insurers to have greater involvement in worker rehabilitation.
-
Chapter 3 examines the key issues raised in evidence to the
inquiry and provides the committee's views.
Acknowledgements
1.9
The committee thanks all individuals and organisations who assisted with
the inquiry.
Notes on references
1.10
References and page numbers for the committee Hansard are to the proof
Hansard. Please note that page numbers may vary between the proof and official
transcripts.
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