25Functions of National Agency

25 Functions of National Agency The functions of the National Agency are as follows— (a) to provide administrative assistance and support to the National Boards, and the Boards’ committees, in exercising their functions;

National Agency Division 1 (b) in consultation with the National Boards, to develop and administer procedures for the purpose of ensuring the efficient and effective operation of the National Boards; (c) to establish procedures for the development of accreditation standards, registration standards and codes and guidelines approved by National Boards, for the purpose of ensuring the national registration and accreditation scheme operates in accordance with good regulatory practice; (d) to negotiate in good faith with, and attempt to come to an agreement with, each National Board on the terms of a health profession agreement; (e) to establish and administer an efficient procedure for receiving and dealing with applications for registration as a health practitioner and other matters relating to the registration of registered health practitioners; (f) in conjunction with the National Boards, to keep up-to-date and publicly accessible national registers of registered health practitioners for each health profession; (g) in conjunction with the National Boards, to keep up-to-date national registers of students for each health profession; (h) to keep an up-to-date and publicly accessible list of approved programs of study for each health profession; (i) to establish an efficient procedure for receiving and dealing with notifications against persons who are or were registered health practitioners and persons who are students, including by establishing a national process for receiving notifications about registered health practitioners in all professions; (j) to give advice to the Ministerial Council on issues relating to the national registration and accreditation scheme;

(k) if asked by the Ministerial Council, to give to the Ministerial Council the assistance or information reasonably required by the Ministerial Council in connection with the administration of the national registration and accreditation scheme; (ka) to do anything else necessary or convenient for the effective and efficient operation of the national registration and accreditation (l) any other function given to the National Agency by or under this Law. 26 Health profession agreements (1) The National Agency must enter into an agreement (a health profession agreement) with a National Board that makes provision for the following— (a) the fees that will be payable under this Law by health practitioners and others in respect of a health profession for which the Board is established (including arrangements relating to refunds of fees, waivers of fees and additional fees for late payment); (b) the annual budget of the National Board (including the funding arrangements for its committees and accreditation authorities); (c) the services to be provided to the National Board by the National Agency to enable the National Board to carry out its functions (2) If the National Agency and a National Board are unable to agree on a matter relating to a health profession agreement or a proposed health profession agreement, the Ministerial Council may give directions to the National Agency and National Board about how the dispute is to be resolved.