Private Health Insurance (National Joint Replacement Register Levy) Rules 2026

The instrument uses a small set of defined concepts and formulas to translate register activity and minimum benefit figures into per‑device levies. The key concepts are:

• Levy day and levy: A levy day is a national joint replacement register levy day for the purposes of the Act; the instrument specifies 30 November in each financial year as that day (s 6). In the instrument the term levy means national joint replacement register levy and levy day means a national joint replacement register levy day (s 5).

• Device benefit amount: For each joint replacement device, the device benefit amount for a levy day is the number of recordings on the register of the provision of that device during the prior financial year (recordings made on or before the 30 September before the levy day) multiplied by the minimum benefit for that device as set out, or worked out using the method set out, in the Private Health Insurance (Medical Devices and Human Tissue Products) Rules as in force immediately before the levy day (s 7(4)(a)-(b)). This ties the calculation to two external data sources: (1) the register recordings up to a fixed cut‑off date, and (2) the minimum benefit values in a separate set of rules.

• Total benefit amount: The total benefit amount for a levy day is the sum of the device benefit amounts for all joint replacement devices for which a recording was made during the prior financial year (s 7(4), definition of total benefit amount). Thus the base allocations depend on aggregate recorded activity weighted by minimum benefit values.

• Base amount: For each device, the “base amount” is the share of the NJRR funding amount apportioned to the device by the formula device benefit amount / total benefit amount × NJRR funding amount (s 7(2)). The base amount is the initial proportional allocation before the cap is applied.

• $5,000 cap and iterative redistribution: The instrument imposes a $5,000 per‑device cap. If a device’s base amount equals or exceeds $5,000, the rate is fixed at $5,000 (s 7(2)). Devices with base amounts less than $5,000 are dealt with by an allocation in s 7(3) that first subtracts from the NJRR funding amount the sum of $5,000 for each device whose base amount exceeds the relevant device’s base and whose rate under the rules equals or exceeds $5,000, then distributes the remaining funds among lower‑base devices in proportion to their device benefit amounts relative to an adjusted total benefit amount defined in s 7(3). The definitions of adjusted total benefit amount and n (the count of higher‑base, capped devices) are integral parts of that step. The result is that the cap is applied to higher‑base devices first and remaining funds are reallocated among the rest.

• NJRR funding amount: The instrument specifies exact funding amounts for the three listed levy days (30 November 2026, 2027, 2028) (s 7(4), NJRR funding amount).

• Liability to pay: The instrument does not create its own default rule for which market actor pays the levy; instead, it defers to Schedule 1 of the Private Health Insurance (Medical Devices and Human Tissue Products) Rules in force on the levy day to identify the person liable for each device (s 8). Consequently, identification of the liable payer requires cross‑reference to another instrument as it stands on the levy day.

These concepts together create a mechanical allocation pathway: determine device activity and minimum benefits, compute device benefit amounts, aggregate to a total benefit amount, compute base amounts, apply the $5,000 cap (iteratively if necessary) under the step 2/step 3 algorithm, and then collect the resulting per‑device levy from the person named in the Medical Devices Rules Schedule for that device on the levy day (s 7, s 8).

The instrument affects a narrow set of parties defined by the Act and the Medical Devices Rules. It identifies three functional roles in the levy process: the data reporters (the source of register recordings), the class of devices that attract a levy, and the person who is legally liable to pay that levy as named in Schedule 1 to the Medical Devices Rules.

• Persons identifiable via Schedule 1 of the Medical Devices Rules: Section 8 states that the levy imposed in relation to a joint replacement device for a financial year is payable by the person mentioned for the device in Schedule 1 to the Private Health Insurance (Medical Devices and Human Tissue Products) Rules in force on the levy day for that financial year. The instrument therefore imposes legal liability on the person who, at the levy day, is named in that external Schedule. The instrument itself does not name those persons; it delegates identification to the Medical Devices Rules in force on the levy day (s 8). Practically, any entity named in that Schedule for a device,manufacturer, importer, supplier, or insurer,will be the legal payer, but the instrument does not itself define that set; compliance requires checking the Schedule as it stands on the levy day.

• Operators of the register and data submitters: The device benefit amount formula depends on the number of recordings on the register during the preceding financial year, with a cut‑off of recordings made on or before the 30 September before the levy day (s 7(4)(a)). Entities that cause recordings to be made on the register (for example hospitals, clinicians, device suppliers or register administrators) will influence the quantum of the levy through their recording activity and timing. The instrument makes the recordings up to that cut‑off date the operative data for levy calculation.

• Parties interested in minimum benefit settings: The device benefit amount multiplies recording counts by the minimum benefit set in the Medical Devices Rules, as in force immediately before the levy day, for the purposes of item 4 of the table in subsection 72‑1(2) of the Private Health Insurance Act 2007 (s 7(4)(b)). Entities that are affected by or influence minimum benefit determinations in that Rules instrument will indirectly affect levy calculations because those minima feed directly into device benefit amounts.

• Treasury, Departmental officials and the Minister for Health and Ageing: The instrument is made by the Minister for Health and Ageing under authority of the Act (s 3), and the Minister or Department will need to implement the calculation, confirm the data to be used and issue notices to liable persons. While the instrument does not specify collection or payment mechanics, administrative responsibility rests with the institutional apparatus created by the Act and referenced Rules.

• Entities tracking cost allocation: Because the levy is tied to device types via the register, organisations responsible for budgeting, cost recovery and pricing (for example private health insurers, device suppliers and hospitals) will be affected by the per‑device levy amounts produced by the calculation. The instrument sets the map by which activity is translated into a monetary obligation for a named legal person on the levy day (s 7, s 8).

Who actually pays, in practice, therefore depends on the content of Schedule 1 to the Medical Devices Rules as it reads on the levy day; the instrument must be read alongside that Schedule to determine the identity of payers for particular devices (s 8). The instrument also affects parties responsible for maintaining accurate register data up to the specified cut‑off date (s 7(4)(a)), and parties concerned with minimum benefit listings or calculations in the Medical Devices Rules (s 7(4)(b)).

The Rules place a set of duties, and create corresponding procedural rights and dependencies, primarily by prescribing a calculation and a payee identification process. The instrument itself establishes obligations to apply the calculation, to use the specified data cut‑offs and references, and to look to the Medical Devices Rules to identify the liable person.

• Duty to use specified levy day and cut‑off dates: The Rules require that the levy day used for the Act’s paragraph 6(1)(a) be 30 November in each financial year (s 6). The device benefit amount is calculated using recordings made on or before the 30 September before the levy day, and it uses the minimum benefit values as in force immediately before the levy day (s 7(4)(a)-(b)). Those are mandatory temporal anchors that implementers must apply.

• Duty to calculate per‑device rates using the algorithm in s 7: The instrument requires the rate to be worked out in two steps. First, compute the base amount for each device using device benefit amount / total benefit amount × NJRR funding amount (s 7(2)). If the base amount is greater than or equal to $5,000, the rate is $5,000. Second, for devices with base amounts less than $5,000, the rate is worked out under the redistribution formula in s 7(3) , subject to the lesser of $5,000 and the allocated amount under that formula. The instrument therefore creates a mandatory computational duty that must be followed in the specified sequence.

• Duty to identify the liable payer via the Medical Devices Rules Schedule: Section 8 creates a duty to obtain the identity of the person required to pay the levy from Schedule 1 to the Private Health Insurance (Medical Devices and Human Tissue Products) Rules as in force on the levy day. The instrument therefore requires cross‑instrument verification before payment can be made.

• Right to clarity on rate caps and funding amounts: The Rules give the right to rely on a $5,000 per‑device cap and on the NJRR funding amounts specified in the instrument for 2026-2028 (s 7(2)-(4)). That is, those numbers are fixed in the instrument for the specified levy days; recipients and liable persons can plan on those caps and funding figures for those years.

• No express payment date, assessment, objection or penalty rights in this instrument: The instrument does not, itself, set a payment due date, an assessment mechanism, objection or review rights, or enforcement or penalty provisions. Those procedural rights and enforcement mechanisms, if any, must be provided by the Act or other instruments. The instrument records that it was made under the Act (s 3), so associated rights and obligations that are not set out here likely sit in the Act. Practically, this means the Rules provide the computational and identification building blocks, but do not create an express administrative pathway for assessment, notification or recovery within this instrument.

• Dependency rights: Entities have the de facto right (practical entitlement) to rely on the Medical Devices Rules as in force immediately before the levy day for minimum benefit values used in the device benefit amount calculation (s 7(4)(b)). Conversely, changes to that Rules instrument before the levy day will alter the inputs used to compute the levy.

To comply with the Rules, responsible persons must follow the calculation algorithm, apply the specified dates and inputs, and identify liable payers by reference to the Medical Devices Rules as in force on the levy day. The instrument creates procedural duties to use particular datasets and published figures; it does not, by itself, set out collection, dispute or sanction procedures.

The Rules do not themselves create offences, fines or express enforcement mechanisms. The instrument is made under the Private Health Insurance (National Joint Replacement Register Levy) Act 2009 (s 3), and it confines itself to setting technical parameters for levy day, levy rate calculation and payee identification. Consequently:

• Absence of penalty provisions in the Rules: There are no provisions in the Rules that specify penalties, late payment interest, administrative fines, objections, review mechanisms, or recovery processes. The instrument’s operative provisions are confined to commencement (s 2), levy day (s 6), rate calculation (s 7), and who is liable (s 8), and to the statutory repeal of the earlier rule (Schedule 1). No clause in the instrument prescribes enforcement steps or sanctions.

• Enforcement and penalty modalities are matters for the Act or other instruments: Because the Rules were made under the Act (s 3), any offences, penalty rates, collection procedures, objection rights or review rights must be expected to be found in the Act itself or in other instruments or legislation that provide administrative or collection authority. The Rules do not attempt to replicate or modify those procedural mechanisms.

• Practical enforcement implication: Administrators who must collect the levy will need to rely on the Act (or separate administrative instruments) for the legal authority to issue assessments, demand payment, enforce recovery or apply sanctions. The Rules only determine how to compute the levy and who is the legal payer for each device (s 7, s 8); they do not describe how the levy notice is to be issued, when payment is due, or what penalties follow non‑payment.

• Interaction with liable‑party identification: Section 8 makes liability depend on an external Schedule in the Medical Devices Rules as in force on the levy day. Where disputes arise over who is the person named in that Schedule, enforcement will need to trace back to the state of that external Rules instrument on the levy day.

In short, the Rules provide calculation and identification mechanics; enforcement authority, recovery pathways and penalty regimes are not set out in this instrument and must be sought in the enabling Act or other administrative rules.

The instrument is deliberately interconnected with the Act under which it is made and with the Private Health Insurance (Medical Devices and Human Tissue Products) Rules and the Private Health Insurance Act 2007. That interdependence dictates both the data inputs and the identity of payers. The principal interactions are as follows.

• Authority: The Rules are made under the Private Health Insurance (National Joint Replacement Register Levy) Act 2009 (s 3). The instrument therefore operates as a subordinate legislative instrument implementing parts of the Act. The Act supplies the legal framework (including the provisions referenced in the Rules: paragraph 6(1)(a), item 1 of the table in subsection 7(1), and section 7A), and the Rules supply the specific dates and formulas necessary to operationalise those Act provisions.

• Dependency on the Private Health Insurance (Medical Devices and Human Tissue Products) Rules: The calculation of device benefit amount depends directly on the minimum benefit for each device "set out, or worked out using the method set out, in the Private Health Insurance (Medical Devices and Human Tissue Products) Rules, as in force immediately before the levy day" (s 7(4)(b)). Section 8 makes the liable party for payment depend on "the person mentioned for the device in Schedule 1 to the Private Health Insurance (Medical Devices and Human Tissue Products) Rules in force on the levy day for that financial year." Thus two critical inputs , the minimum benefit values and the identity of the liable person , are both supplied by the Medical Devices Rules as they read on or before the levy day. Any amendment to that instrument before the levy day will change both the monetary input and the legal payee.

• Reference to the Private Health Insurance Act 2007: The instrument refers expressly to item 4 of the table in subsection 72‑1(2) of the Private Health Insurance Act 2007 in specifying the purpose for which the minimum benefits are set and used (s 7(4)(b)). The minimum benefits therefore have a statutory purpose under the PHI Act and are treated by the Rules as fixed inputs for levy calculation.

• Data source interaction with the register: The instrument uses the number of recordings on the register of the provision of a joint replacement device made during the financial year ending before the levy day, with recordings counted only if made on or before 30 September before the levy day (s 7(4)(a) and s 6). This creates an operational interface with the register’s data management rules, submission deadlines, and accuracy processes. Any rules that govern who may record, when, or how corrections are made will affect the device benefit amount; corrections made after the 30 September cut‑off are excluded from the counting for that levy day.

• Repeal of the 2015 Rules: The instrument expressly repeals the entire Private Health Insurance (National Joint Replacement Register Levy) Rule 2015 (Schedule 1). That repeal means the 2015 Rule no longer interacts with the Act or the Medical Devices Rules for levy days after this instrument takes effect. Administratively, payments and liability assessments previously governed by the 2015 Rule will be replaced by the mechanics in this instrument.

• Temporal interlocks: The definition of device benefit amount requires reference to the Medical Devices Rules "as in force immediately before the levy day" (s 7(4)(b)), while s 8 requires the liable person be identified by the Schedule "in force on the levy day." Those slightly different temporal anchors (immediately before versus on the levy day) require careful cross‑checking: minimum benefits use the state immediately before the levy day, whereas the payee identification uses the state on the levy day. Implementers must reconcile these interlocks to ensure they apply the correct legal instrument versions and avoid miscalculations.

• Absent provisions: The Rules are silent on collection mechanics, notice periods, due dates, interest and penalties, and appeal procedures; readers must look to the Act and other subordinate instruments for those operational and enforcement elements (s 3). The Rules therefore function as a calculation and payer‑designation layer in a broader statutory architecture.

Overall, the instrument functions as a narrowly scoped subordinate instrument that draws its key inputs and payee identification from other statutory instruments and the register, and that relies on the enabling Act for legal authority and for any enforcement or collection framework.

The instrument contains only the original‑making commencement table and the single schedule that repeals the prior instrument. The amendment history as recorded within the instrument itself is therefore minimal and explicit.

• Original making and commencement: The whole instrument is set to commence on 1 April 2026 (s 2(1)). The commencement table includes a note that it relates only to the provisions as originally made and will not be amended to deal with later amendments (s 2 notes). The instrument records the making date and signature of the Minister for Health and Ageing (dated 11 March 2026, signature Mark Butler), establishing the instrument’s provenance.

• Repeal of the 2015 Rules: Schedule 1 repeals the entire Private Health Insurance (National Joint Replacement Register Levy) Rule 2015. The Schedule contains a single item: "The whole of the instrument, repeal the instrument." That is a complete repeal; the 2015 Rules cease to have effect once this instrument commences (Schedule 1).

• No in‑instrument amendments or legislative history recorded: The instrument does not show any prior amendments to itself and does not contain any later amendment entries. It includes a standard explanatory note that the commencement table refers only to the instrument as originally made and will not be amended in the text (s 2 note). There is no recorded amendment after making within the text provided.

• Fixed NJRR funding amounts for initial levy days: The instrument fixes NJRR funding amounts for three levy days (30 November 2026, 30 November 2027 and 30 November 2028) in s 7(4). Those explicit figures form part of the instrument as made. There is no provision in the instrument for automatic indexing or adjustment beyond those specified amounts or beyond the three years listed.

• No sunset, review or future amendment mechanism stated: The instrument does not include any express trigger for review, automatic escalation, or further amendments. It neither prescribes a mechanism for updating the NJRR funding amount beyond the years listed, nor includes a savings provision for changes to external Rules beyond the cross‑references used in the calculations. Any future changes to the levy mechanics or funding amounts would therefore require a fresh instrument amending these Rules or a legislative change under the Act.

In short, the instrument’s amendment history, as recorded within the instrument, is limited to its original making (dated 11 March 2026) and the complete repeal of the 2015 instrument via Schedule 1. Any further changes to these Rules must be made by subsequent instruments or amendments not recorded in the text provided.

The instrument contains no record of litigation, judicial decisions, or tribunal proceedings. There are no case names, reported decisions, or references to disputes included in the text. As such:

• No litigated disputes recorded in the instrument: The Rules do not describe any past or pending litigation about their validity, interpretation, or enforcement. The instrument is presented as a technical subordinate instrument, and the text contains no litigation history.

• Potential sources of dispute evident from the Rules’ mechanics: While the instrument records no litigation history, its mechanics create several determinations that could in practice give rise to disputes. Those areas, drawn from the instrument’s text, include (a) the identity of the liable person where Schedule 1 to the Medical Devices Rules is ambiguous or changes around the levy day (s 8); (b) the appropriate recordings to be counted where register entries are made close to, or corrected after, the 30 September cut‑off (s 7(4)(a), s 6); (c) the correct minimum benefit value to be used where the Medical Devices Rules set minimum benefits by method rather than fixed numbers, or where the method results in ambiguous outputs (s 7(4)(b)); and (d) computational disputes arising from the iterative application of the cap and adjusted total benefit amount in s 7(2)-(3).

• Dependence on the Act and other instruments for procedural dispute pathways: Any procedural mechanism for contesting an assessment, seeking review or appealing a decision will depend on the enabling Act or other subordinate instruments. The Rules themselves do not set out objection, review or judicial review procedures; they also do not provide for notices or assessments. Therefore, disputes that arise over the application of these Rules would be litigated or reviewed using the procedures and causes of action created by the Act, other subordinate instruments, or general administrative law.

• Practical steps where disputes are likely: Because the Rules rely on external instruments and register data, parties wishing to reduce litigation risk should document the versions of the Medical Devices Rules used, retain timestamped evidence of register recordings up to the cut‑off date, and record the calculation steps used to produce the levy rates. The instrument’s explicit reliance on specific temporal anchors (for example, "as in force immediately before the levy day" and "in force on the levy day") means that evidence of instrument versions and their effective dates will be central to any challenge.

In summary, the Rules carry no litigation history in their text. They do, however, create a number of discrete factual and legal interfaces (payee identification, data cut‑offs, minimum benefit method outputs, and an iterative allocation algorithm) where disputes could arise and where any procedural remediation would be found in the Act or other instruments, not in the Rules themselves.

The Rules are concise but contain several technical features and interdependencies that can produce practical pitfalls for implementers. The following points set out concrete traps that arise from the instrument’s text and mechanics.

• Different temporal anchors for inputs and payee identification: The instrument requires use of the Medical Devices Rules "as in force immediately before the levy day" for minimum benefit values (s 7(4)(b)) but requires identification of the person liable to pay the levy from Schedule 1 to those Rules "in force on the levy day" (s 8). These two slightly different temporal references mean that a change to the Medical Devices Rules between the moment "immediately before" the levy day and the levy day itself can alter who pays without altering the minimum benefit inputs, or vice versa. Implementers must explicitly check both the version in force immediately before the levy day and the version in force on the levy day.

• Cut‑off for register recordings is 30 September before levy day: The device benefit amount depends on recordings made during the prior financial year but only those recordings made on or before 30 September before the levy day (s 7(4)(a) and s 6). Where register entries are submitted late, corrected after submission or backdated, they may not be counted for that levy day. This produces potential commercial surprise for parties who rely on late data corrections to adjust levy exposure.

• Iterative cap algorithm requires correct ordering and iteration: The Step 2/Step 3 regime in s 7(2)-(3) is not a single‑pass proportional allocation; it requires identification of devices whose base amounts equal or exceed $5,000 and fixing their rates at $5,000, then redistributing remaining funds among devices with lower base amounts in proportion to their device benefit amounts relative to an adjusted total benefit amount. The definitions in s 7(3) require comparing base amounts and determining n (the number of devices whose base amount exceeds the relevant device's base and whose worked‑out rate equals or exceeds $5,000). Implementers must therefore perform the calculation in descending base amount order and iterate to find which devices are capped. Misordering or failing to iterate can produce materially different per‑device rates.

• Rounding and numerical precision not specified: The Rules provide no instruction about rounding (for example to cents) or numerical precision in intermediate steps. Implementers will have to choose a consistent rounding protocol; differences in rounding could change whether a base amount is treated as equal to $5,000 or slightly under, with consequential effects under the cap. The instrument does not provide a tie‑breaker or rounding rule.

• NJRR funding amounts are fixed only for three levy days: The instrument specifies NJRR funding amounts for 30 November 2026, 2027 and 2028 (s 7(4), NJRR funding amount). It contains no figure for levy days beyond 2028. Unless a further instrument sets an amount for subsequent years, there will be no NJRR funding amount in this instrument to use for later levy days. Implementers must watch for subsequent instruments or the absence of a figure and plan accordingly.

• Liability depends on a separate Schedule that may change: Section 8 ties liability to the person named in Schedule 1 to the Medical Devices Rules "in force on the levy day." That means the legal debtor could change if the Medical Devices Rules are amended. Entities that expect to be liable or to charge a levy through contractual pass‑through should confirm who is the named person in that Schedule on the levy day and consider whether their commercial arrangements align with legal liability.

• Repeal of the 2015 Rules: The instrument repeals the 2015 instrument in full (Schedule 1). Where prior practice, forms or collection arrangements were governed by the 2015 Rules, those arrangements will change under the 2026 Rules; administrators must ensure any procedural practices derived from the 2015 Rules are updated to reflect the new mechanics.

• No payment timing, notice, or enforcement detail in the Rules: The instrument does not set payment due dates, notice requirements or enforcement processes. Those procedural elements will be found in the Act or other subordinate instruments. Parties cannot rely on this instrument for timelines or remedies; they must consult the Act for those matters.

• Reliance on the Private Health Insurance (Medical Devices and Human Tissue Products) Rules methods: The definition of device benefit amount allows that the minimum benefit for a device may be "worked out using the method set out" in the Medical Devices Rules (s 7(4)(b)). Where the Medical Devices Rules prescribe a calculation method rather than a single number, implementers must ensure they apply that method correctly and use the version of the Rules that is effective immediately before the levy day.

• Potential for changed economic incidence: Although s 8 assigns legal liability to the person listed in the Medical Devices Rules Schedule, the actual economic incidence (who bears cost) may differ depending on commercial arrangements. Contracts, supply agreements, or insurer reimbursement practices determine where costs are ultimately borne, but the instrument’s legal obligation follows the Schedule on the levy day.

These are operationally concrete, source‑grounded pitfalls arising directly from the Rules’ text. Addressing them requires careful cross‑checking of instrument versions, precise data cut‑offs, iterative computational logic, and a governance process that documents the versions and inputs used for each levy day.

Compliance with the Rules requires a sequence of verifiable steps and a small set of cross‑references to other legislative instruments. The following practical checklist translates the instrument’s provisions into an operational compliance pathway, with specific references to the provisions to consult.

1. Confirm commencement and relevant levy day: Note that the Rules commence on 1 April 2026 (s 2(1)). For operational purposes, the instrument specifies 30 November of each financial year as the levy day to be used under paragraph 6(1)(a) of the Act (s 6). Calendar the levy day and ensure compliance processes are in place well before the 30 September recording cut‑off described below.

2. Assemble register recording data up to the cut‑off: For each joint replacement device, collect the number of recordings on the national joint replacement register of the provision of that device during the financial year ending before the levy day, counting only recordings made on or before 30 September before the levy day (s 7(4)(a)). Maintain timestamped records showing when each register entry was made to validate inclusion or exclusion against the 30 September cut‑off.

3. Obtain minimum benefit figures and Schedule 1 content from the Medical Devices Rules: For each device, obtain the minimum benefit set out, or worked out using the method set out, in the Private Health Insurance (Medical Devices and Human Tissue Products) Rules as in force immediately before the levy day for the purpose identified in item 4 of the table in subsection 72‑1(2) of the Private Health Insurance Act 2007 (s 7(4)(b)). Also retrieve Schedule 1 to that Rules instrument as in force on the levy day to identify the person legally liable for each device (s 8). Preserve copies of the Medical Devices Rules versions used and their effective dates.

4. Compute device benefit amounts: For each device, multiply the number of register recordings (from step 2) by the minimum benefit value (from step 3) to calculate the device benefit amount for the levy day (s 7(4), definition of device benefit amount). Maintain an auditable ledger of these calculations.

5. Compute total benefit amount: Sum the device benefit amounts for all devices with recordings during the relevant period to produce the total benefit amount for the levy day (s 7(4), definition of total benefit amount).

6. Apply Step 1 allocation and $5,000 cap: For each device, compute the base amount using device benefit amount / total benefit amount × NJRR funding amount (s 7(2)). Compare each base amount to the $5,000 cap. If the base amount equals or exceeds $5,000, the rate for that device is $5,000 (s 7(2)).

7. Apply Step 2 redistribution for devices with base amount < $5,000: For any device whose base amount is less than $5,000, compute the rate using the formula in s 7(3). That requires calculating:

   • adjusted total benefit amount: total benefit amount less the sum of device benefit amounts for those devices whose base amount exceeds the base amount of the relevant device and whose rate under the rules equals or exceeds $5,000 (s 7(3) definition).

   • n: the number of devices for which the base amount exceeds the relevant device’s base amount and whose worked‑out rate equals or exceeds $5,000 (s 7(3) definition).

   • the residual funding pool: NJRR funding amount minus ($5,000 × n) (s 7(3), bracketed term).

   • the device’s share of the residual pool: (device benefit amount / adjusted total benefit amount) × residual funding pool (s 7(3)).

   • then take the lesser of $5,000 and that computed amount as the final rate for that device (s 7(3)).

   Implement this step iteratively in descending order of base amount to identify which devices are capped, calculate n and adjusted totals correctly, and distribute residual funds accordingly. Document the iteration steps and assumptions (for example, any rounding rules adopted).

8. Use the NJRR funding amount specified for the levy day: For levy days 30 November 2026, 2027 and 2028 use the NJRR funding amounts provided in s 7(4): $3,638,000; $3,703,000; $3,405,000 respectively. For levy days beyond 2028, do not assume a figure exists in this instrument; check for subsequent instruments or guidance setting the NJRR funding amount.

9. Identify the legal payer and deliver payment per the Act’s collection rules: For each device, identify the person to whom the levy is payable by consulting Schedule 1 to the Medical Devices Rules as in force on the levy day (s 8). The instrument does not specify payment mechanics, due dates or sanctions; those matters must be resolved by reference to the Act and any relevant administrative rules. Ensure payment is directed to the correct authority and meets any statutory timelines specified elsewhere.

10. Retain documentation and version control: Maintain archived copies of: (a) the register records up to the 30 September cut‑off with timestamps; (b) the Medical Devices Rules versions used for minimum benefits and Schedule 1 (noting "immediately before the levy day" and "on the levy day" distinctions); (c) the NJRR funding amount applicable to the levy day; and (d) the detailed calculation workpapers including rounding methods and iteration steps. This documentation will be critical if questions or disputes arise, because the Rules rely on external instrument versions and register snapshots.

11. Check for changes to external instruments and subsequent Rules: Before each levy day, confirm whether the Private Health Insurance (Medical Devices and Human Tissue Products) Rules or other relevant instruments have been amended and whether any further subordinate instrument has set a new NJRR funding amount for forthcoming levy days. The instrument’s entries for minimum benefits and liable payers are version‑sensitive (s 7(4)(a)-(b), s 8).

12. Governance and control: Assign responsibility for (a) extracting register counts; (b) retrieving and certifying Medical Devices Rules versions; (c) performing the iterative allocations; and (d) authorising payments to the legally liable persons. Ensure internal or external audit trails exist to validate inputs and calculations.

Following these steps will align operational practice with the instrument’s textual requirements: use the 30 November levy day (s 6), count recordings only up to the 30 September cut‑off (s 7(4)(a)), use minimum benefits as in force immediately before the levy day (s 7(4)(b)), compute device benefit and total benefit amounts (s 7(4)), apply the allocation and $5,000 cap algorithm (s 7(2)-(3)), and pay the person named in Schedule 1 to the Medical Devices Rules as in force on the levy day (s 8). Because the instrument does not provide payment timing, methods or enforcement steps, compliance must also address any procedural obligations set out in the Act or other instruments.