To meet the reporting requirements of section 240 of the National Health Reform Act 2011, the Administrator's monthly reports must detailing the following at the Local Hospital Network level:
- the basis for the amount of Commonwealth funding flowing into Pool accounts;
- the basis for the amount of State funding flowing into Pool accounts and State managed funds;
- the number of public hospital services funded and provided as a running yearly total, in accordance with the national system of ABF; and
- the delivery of other public hospital functions funded by the National Health Funding Pool and State managed funds as a running yearly total.
The same transparency arrangements that apply to the National Health Funding Pool also apply to State Managed Funds. States provide data to the Administrator (in accordance with the Administrator’s Three Year Data Plan) on the:
- flow of Commonwealth and State funds into and out of State managed funds; and
- provision of public hospital services by Local Hospital Networks.
In May 2020, the Commonwealth, State and Territory governments signed the Addendum to the National Health Reform Agreement 2020-21 to 2024-25. The Addendum maintains a commitment to Activity Based funding and four strategic priorities to further guide health system reform:
- Improving efficiency and ensuring financial sustainability;
- Delivering safe, high-quality care in the right place at the right time;
- Prioritising prevention and helping people manage their health across their lifetime; and
- Driving best practice and performance using data and research.
The Addendum maintains the National Funding Cap (which limits growth in Commonwealth NHR funding at 6.5 per cent a year) and Safety and Quality Adjustments and provides for:
- Establishing a single Commonwealth Contribution Rate (CCR) in each State across all ABF service categories;
- Implementation of a pricing model for avoidable hospital readmissions commencing 1 July 2021;
- New funding arrangements for new, high cost, highly specialised therapies (HSTs) that are recommended for delivery in a public hospital setting by the Medical Services Advisory Committee; and
- Working with the Independent Hospital Pricing Authority (IHPA) to develop an approach to achieve to achieve overall payment parity between public and private patients in public hospitals (A44) from 1 July 2021.