Recommendation 1

6.11    The committee recommends that the Commonwealth Government immediately implement an application process with clear, objective and transparent assessment criteria to permit hospitals and radiology practices to apply for licences for Magnetic Resonance Imaging machines.

Recommendation 2

6.12    The committee recommends that the Medicare Benefits Schedule Review Taskforce review the Magnetic Resonance Imaging referral pathway and rebates, including consideration of options to allow specialists and general practitioners to refer patients to both fully licensed and partially licensed machines.

Recommendation 3

6.17    The committee recommends that the Department of Health consider how to make diagnostic imaging services fully accessible to people with physical disability.

Recommendation 4

6.21    The committee recommends that state and territory governments review the adequacy of patient transport subsidies that are currently available with a specific view to ensuring access to diagnostic imaging.

Recommendation 5

6.24    The committee recommends that the Department of Health review the operations of the multiple services rule to ensure that it is achieving its policy intent and consider any changes required.

Recommendation 6

6.29    The committee recommends that the Department of Health consider tightening capital sensitivity measures in metropolitan centres.

Recommendation 7

6.30    The committee recommends that the Commonwealth Government reinvest into the Medicare Benefits Schedule, savings obtained from the removal or alteration of diagnostic imaging items in the Medicare Benefits Schedule Review.

Recommendation 8

6.31    The committee recommends that the capital sensitivity exemptions and the Health Insurance Act 1973 section 19(2) exemptions for regional, rural and remote Australian health services should be reviewed to establish the impact on regional, rural and remote health outcomes.

Recommendation 9

6.34    The committee recommends that state and territory governments investigate how data sharing measures between public hospitals can be improved to support teleradiology services and that these improvements are implemented as soon as practicable.

Recommendation 10

6.37    The committee recommends that the Minister for Health commission a review into the Medical Services Advisory Committee's processes with a view to reducing the time between submission of an application and a decision being made.

Recommendation 11

6.40    The committee recommends that the number of radiologists trained each year be increased following consultation between the Department of Health and the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Radiologists.

Recommendation 12

6.43    The committee recommends that the Department of Health consider if there are mechanisms that can be put in place to encourage private radiology practices to train sonographers.

Recommendation 13

6.44    The committee recommends that private radiology practices train more sonographers.

Recommendation 14

6.46    The committee recommends that the Department of Health work with stakeholders to facilitate nurses and nurse practitioners expanding their clinical scope of practice to include certain ultrasounds, where they have received proper training and sonographers are not available to do so.

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