Part 4Financial benefits

Part 4—Financial benefits 19—Certification by designated person (section 30 of Act) (1) For the purposes of paragraph (b) of the definition of designated person in section 30(10) of the Act, a nurse practitioner— (a) is a person of a prescribed class; and (b) may, subject to subregulation (2), provide a certificate for the purposes of a claim if the nurse practitioner has examined the worker at— (i) an incorporated hospital; or (ii) a private hospital, within the meaning of the Health Care Act 2008. (2) A nurse practitioner's ability to act under section 30 of the Act is limited to certifying the worker's capacity for work over the ensuing 7 days. nurse practitioner means a nurse whose registration under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law is endorsed as being qualified to practise as a nurse practitioner. 20—Notices For the purposes of sections 31(8), 47(4), 48(5) and 60(7) of the Act, the following information must be included in a notice under any of those sections: (a) a statement of the decision that has been made; (b) a reference to the provision of the Act and, if relevant, the regulations made under the Act, on which the Corporation has relied in making the decision, and the text of that provision; (c) the reasons for the decision (including information about the evidence on which the decision is based). 21—Medical expenses—accommodation costs (section 33 of Act) (1) For the purposes of section 33(2)(e) of the Act, the maximum amount of compensation payable for the cost of the accommodation (including meals) of a worker away from home for the purpose of receiving medical services or approved recovery/return to work services is $215 per day (indexed). (2) If an amount under subregulation (1) relates to accommodation outside South Australia, the maximum amount is increased by an additional $86 per day (indexed). 22—Medical expenses—application for approval (section 33 of Act) (1) For the purposes of section 33(17) of the Act, all services, appliances, medicines and materials referred to in section 33(2) of the Act, other than services referred to in subsection (2)(c), are prescribed. (2) For the purposes of section 33(18) of the Act, an application must— (a) be supported by medical evidence provided by a medical practitioner; and (b) include the following information: (i) the worker's full name, telephone number and address; (ii) the worker's date of birth; (iii) the claim number; (iv) the employer's name; (v) the nature of the injury; (vi) the date that the injury was suffered; (vii) details of the service, appliance, medicine or other materials forming the basis of the application; (viii) details of the reason for making the application. (3) For the purposes of section 33(18) of the Act, the Corporation must make a decision within 1 month of the making of the application. 23—Medical expenses—period of entitlement (section 33(21) of Act) (1) For the purposes of section 33(21)(b)(iii) of the Act, the following classes of injury are prescribed: (aaa) asbestosis; (aa) mesothelioma; (a) multiple myeloma; (b) primary leukaemia; (c) primary non-Hodgkin's lymphoma; (d) primary site bladder cancer; (e) primary site brain cancer; (f) primary site breast cancer; (g) primary site colorectal cancer; (h) primary site kidney cancer; (i) primary site oesophageal cancer; (j) primary site prostate cancer; (k) primary site testicular cancer; (l) primary site ureter cancer; (m) pneumoconiosis (including silicosis) and other injuries in so far as they are caused by exposure to crystalline silica. (2) For the purposes of section 33(21)(b)(iv) of the Act, section 33(20) of the Act will not apply if— (a) the services relate to an injury that is subject to the application of the Act by virtue of clause 29(1)(a) of Schedule 9 of the Act (an existing injury); and (b) the services— (i) constitute surgery, or associated medical, nursing or medical rehabilitation services (including the cost of hospitalisation), associated with the provision, maintenance or replacement of a therapeutic appliance; and (ii) have been approved by the Corporation. (2a) For the purposes of section 33(21)(b)(iv) of the Act, section 33(20) of the Act will not apply if— (a) the services relate to an injury that is subject to the application of the Act by virtue of clause 29(1)(a) of Schedule 9 of the Act (an existing injury); and (b) the services constitute surgery, or associated medical, nursing or medical rehabilitation services (including the cost of hospitalisation), where the Corporation has determined or accepted, on application made before 1 July 2016, that it is reasonable and appropriate for such surgery to be undertaken at a later time due to the impact (or likely impact) of the existing injury on the worker's health and capacity (or future health and capacity). (2b) For the purposes of section 33(21)(b)(iv) of the Act, section 33(20) of the Act will not apply in relation to travel and accommodation costs incurred by a worker in attending an assessment for permanent impairment under Part 2 Division 5 of the Act. (3) For the purposes of section 97 of the Act— (a) a decision not to grant an approval under subregulation (2)(b); or (b) a decision on an application under subregulation (2a)(b), is declared to be reviewable. 24—Transportation for initial treatment (section 34 of Act) For the purposes of section 34(4) of the Act, the amount of $277 (indexed) is prescribed. 25—Compensation for property damage (section 35 of Act) For the purposes of section 35 of the Act, the following limits apply in relation to the compensation payable for damage to personal property: (a) for damage to therapeutic appliances and tools of trade—no limit; (b) for damage to clothes and personal effects—$2 374 (indexed) in total. 26—Supplementary income support (section 40 of Act) For the purposes of section 40(3) of the Act, the rate of supplementary income support payments determined in accordance with section 39(1)(b) of the Act will be adjusted to take into account changes in the CPI between the quarter immediately preceding the quarter in which the second designated period came to an end and the quarter falling 2 quarters before the supplementary income support payments commence (with any amount so adjusted being rounded up to the nearest dollar). 27—Federal minimum wage adjustment scheme (section 42 of Act) For the purposes of section 42(3) of the Act, the adjustment to the Federal minimum wage will be made in each year— (a) if 1 July is a Sunday—on that day; or (b) on the first Sunday following 1 July. 28—Rate of interest payable on weekly payments in arrears (section 48 of Act) (1) Subject to subregulation (2), for the purposes of section 48(12) of the Act, the amount in arrears will be increased by interest on the amount at the prime bank rate for the financial year in which the amount went into arrears, compounded on a weekly basis for each complete week that the amount is in arrears. (2) If the amount the worker is entitled to be paid relates to more than 1 financial year, those amounts will be increased by interest at the relevant prime bank rate for each financial year, compounded on a weekly basis. 29—Recovery of certain amounts paid to workers (section 48 of Act) (1) This regulation applies in relation to the Corporation's ability to recover or set off an amount under section 48(13), (14) or (15) of the Act. (2) Subject to subregulation (3), the Corporation must— (a) commence proceedings to recover an amount due to the Corporation as a debt; or (b) exercise a right of set off under section 48(13)(b) of the Act, within 2 years after the date on which the Corporation becomes entitled to take action under the Act. (3) If the Corporation is satisfied on reasonable grounds that the worker provided false or misleading information to the Corporation, the Corporation may commence the proceedings or exercise the right of set off referred to in subregulation (2) at any time within 10 years after the date on which the Corporation becomes entitled to take action under the Act. (4) The Corporation may, according to what is reasonable in the circumstances of the particular case, recover an amount under section 48(13), (14) or (15) of the Act— (a) as a single lump sum; or (b) by periodic payments; or (c) by a combination of a lump sum and periodic payments; or (d) in some other manner agreed between the Corporation and the worker. (5) Subregulation (4) operates subject to the following qualifications: (a) the Corporation cannot require that a worker make periodic payments in excess of 10% of the worker's net income for the period over which those payments are to be made without the agreement of the worker; (b) the Corporation may, in its absolute discretion, waive (absolutely or subject to such conditions as the Corporation thinks fit) the whole or any part of an amount that it is entitled to recover if— (i) the Corporation is satisfied that the worker is experiencing severe financial hardship, or it appears appropriate to do so on account of any other special circumstances peculiar to the worker; or (ii) the Corporation considers that it is appropriate to do so after the Corporation has balanced the likely costs that would be associated with recovering the amount against the amount itself; (c) unless the Corporation is satisfied on reasonable grounds that the worker has provided false or misleading information to the Corporation, the Corporation must grant the following remissions if the total amount payable is repaid within the following periods: (i) a 15% remission if the total amount is repaid within 1 month of the date on which the worker first receives a written notification of the amount that the worker is liable to pay; (ii) a 10% remission if the total amount is repaid within 6 months of the date on which the worker first receives a written notification of the amount that the worker is liable to pay. (6) If a worker has made a periodic payment to the Corporation under subregulation (4), the Corporation must, within a reasonable time after the end of the financial year in which the payment is made, furnish the worker with a statement that sets out— (a) the total amount paid by the worker during that financial year; and (b) the amount left to be paid (if any), and must furnish a final statement when the debt is extinguished. (7) In this regulation— net income of a worker means income after an appropriate deduction is made for any income tax payable by the worker. 30—Absence from Australia (section 51 of Act) (1) For the purposes of section 51(1) of the Act, a worker intending to be absent from Australia must give the Corporation the following information: (a) the date on which the worker intends to leave Australia; (b) the date on which the worker intends to return to Australia or, if there is no such date, an estimate of the duration of his or her absence from Australia; (c) details of the places where the worker will be while absent from Australia; (d) an address (which may be an email address), or a telephone number, at which contact may be made with the worker; (e) details of any treatment that the worker intends to receive, or details of any arrangements for treatment that the worker has made, while absent from Australia; (f) details of any employment that the worker intends to undertake or seek while absent from Australia; (g) details of any consultation in relation to the proposed absence that the worker has undertaken with any employer (including information as to the outcome of that consultation). (2) The information required under subregulation (1) must be supplied in a form determined by the Corporation. (3) The information required under subregulation (1) may be provided in electronic form according to a determination made by the Corporation and published in the Gazette. 31—Prescribed limits on costs—provision of professional advice (section 53 of Act) For the purposes of section 53(4) of the Act, the following limits are prescribed in relation to the indemnity provided by the Corporation for the costs of obtaining advice in the event of redemption negotiations: