Chair of the committee, Trent Zimmerman MP, said the committee looked forward to receiving information on childhood rheumatic diseases and juvenile arthritis.
Mr Zimmerman said, "The committee will examine research into the causes of childhood rheumatic diseases and will focus on the health, social, educational and economic health impacts on children and adults who develop these diseases.
"The committee will also look at access to medical services, including diagnosis, treatment and ongoing management and support for all patients. The inquiry will focus on best practice quality of care and availability of treatments as well as assessing the professional education and training that is currently available for patients.
"We’re looking forward to hearing from the public, health professionals, patients and all interested stakeholders on how Australia’s health system could improve the management of rheumatic diseases for all patients and their families."
Submissions from interested individuals and organisations have been invited by Friday February 4, 2022. The preferred method of receiving submissions is by electronic format lodged online using a My Parliament account.
Further information about the committee’s inquiry, including the full terms of reference and details on how to lodge a submission are available at the committee’s website.
THE House of Representatives Standing Committee on Economics today tabled its report into the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) Annual Reports 2019 and 2020. The report focuses on matters arising from public hearings held in October 2020 and February 2021.
Committee Chair Jason Falinski said, "Scrutinising our competition regulator is an important function of the committee and has been especially vital at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic has prompted significant changes to the ACCC’s regulatory work and priorities."
The committee heard from the ACCC on its responses to the pandemic across multiple sectors. Important measures such as temporary market authorisations have enabled market activity to continue to proceed in the best interests of Australians and the broader economy.
The committee also heard from the ACCC regarding its work responding to COVID-related scams targeting Australians, and its management of issues arising from widespread travel cancellations.
Beyond the COVID-19 pandemic, the committee inquired into issues such as the ACCC’s role in the Digital Platforms Inquiry, the financial technology sector, unconscionable and unfair conduct, common ownership, product safety, and motor vehicle service and repair information.
Mr Falinski said, "The ACCC’s work throughout the COVID-19 pandemic has been agile and responsive to emerging issues. While some ACCC priorities were put on hold to address these issues, it has continued to maintain substantial compliance and enforcement responsibilities across the competition and consumer law sector."
The measures in the Bill improve the legislative framework governing the National Intelligence Community (NIC) by addressing key operational challenges facing the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO), the Australian Secret Intelligence Service (ASIS), the Australian Signals Directorate (ASD), the Australian Geospatial-Intelligence Organisation (AGO), the Defence Intelligence Organisation (DIO) and the Office of National Intelligence (ONI). The Bill also includes amendments recommended by the 2017 Independent Intelligence Review (IIR) and other measures intended to address important and pressing issues facing these agencies.
PJCIS Chair Senator James Paterson said it was clear that Australia’s threat environment had evolved.
"While we need to ensure that our intelligence agencies have the very best tools at their disposal to keep pace with emerging and evolving threats, we also need to ensure that these tools are proportionate and have robust oversight mechanisms," Senator Paterson said.
The Committee requests submissions to the inquiry by Thursday, February 3, 2022.
Further information about making a submission to a committee inquiry can be found at this link. Further information on the inquiry can be obtained from the committee’s website.
Committee Chair Dave Sharma MP said, "This agreement will allow Australia to access critical naval nuclear propulsion information from the United States and United Kingdom, and allow the exchange of sensitive and classified naval nuclear propulsion information with a third country for the first time.
"It will help determine the optimal pathway for acquiring nuclear-powered submarines for the Royal Australian Navy, one of the most important strategic military capabilities for Australia in the decades ahead."
The ENNPI Agreement will also provide a mechanism for Australian personnel to access training and education from the UK and US counterparts, necessary for learning how to safely build, operate and support nuclear-powered submarines.
The committee is now accepting submissions and will hold a public hearing on Monday, November 29, 2021.
Further information on the inquiry can be found on the Committee website.
Submissions
Submissions to the inquiry are now open and close on Friday, November 26, 2021.
Public hearing
The committee will hold a public hearing on Monday, November 29, 2021 at 11.15am AEDT.
The program for the hearing will be made available online and the hearing will be broadcast live at aph.gov.au/live.
A NEW parliamentary report, The New Frontier: Delivering better health for all Australians is recommending significant reforms to the health care system to ensure Australians have better and faster access to the wave of new medicines and technologies.
The chair of the committee, Trent Zimmerman MP said, "We are witnessing what will be a revolution in the treatment of many conditions, as our understanding of genomics and the development of precision medicine develops. In so many other areas we are also seeing progress in drugs and technology, which has been reflected in the development of COVID-19 vaccines and treatments.
"These innovations reflect the new frontier of medicine, which is giving hope to many for better treatments and technologies for conditions ranging from cancers to rare diseases. At its forefront, is the development of personalised or precision medicine, which is being delivered as our understanding of fields – like genomics – grows."
Australia has one of the world’s best systems for assessing new treatments and ensuring they are delivered in an affordable way to patients. However, the system can be improved and we need to ensure it is ready to meet the challenges of many new innovations that will not neatly fit current health technology assessment processes.
"Throughout its 15-month inquiry, the committee received over 200 submissions and held 13 days of public hearings in several capital cities. The committee was moved by the testimony of patients and their families and inspired by the work of our researchers and medical scientists. The committee was impressed by the professionalism of those working in the medicines and technology sectors and appreciative of the obvious dedication, co-operation and knowledge of those within the health department who assisted our deliberations in public and private hearings and through their submissions.
"I believe that all the committee’s recommendations will make a real difference to the lives of Australian patients as well as industry and the R&D sector, including the clinical trials sector," Mr Zimmerman said.
Deputy chair of the committee, Dr Mike Freelander MP, made the following comments in relation to the Inquiry:
"We are at an inflection point in healthcare in Australia at the present time, because of the rapidly increasing treatments becoming available for conditions previously considered untreatable.
"This is particularly so in my own field of paediatrics.
"How Australians get access to these treatments in an equitable manner has been the main focus of our Inquiry.
"I have learnt a lot during the course of the Inquiry, and have been humbled by the experience.
"I am particularly grateful to the chair, Trent Zimmerman, and to the incredibly hardworking secretariat, without whose efforts the Inquiry would not have been possible.
"I am very grateful for the manner in which our Inquiry has been approached by staff at the Health Department, particularly Prof John Skerritt and his staff at the TGA, the PBAC and MSAC, who at all times gave their support and never refused to give us time for meetings.
"I reiterate my support and thanks for all those who presented to us.
"I’ve enjoyed the Inquiry and the bigger picture is to now get whoever is in government to act on our recommendations."
The bipartisan report makes 31 recommendations to reform Australia’s system for the regulation and reimbursement with the hope that patients will receive faster access to the latest medicines and technologies.
The chair planned to table this report in the House of Representatives between 10am and 11am on Thursday November 25, 2021.
The full text of the report will be available on the committee’s website after tabling.
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