Health

View printable version of this page

The Privacy Commissioner can issue advisory guidelines under section 27(1)(e) of the Privacy Act. Guidelines on Privacy in the Private Health Sector were issued in 2001.

• Guidelines on Privacy in the Private Health Sector

The Privacy Commissioner also performs functions under the National Health Act 1953 (Cth). The Commissioner is required to issue mandatory guidelines covering the storage, use, disclosure and retention of individuals' claims information under the Medicare Benefits and the Pharmaceutical Benefits programs. The Guidelines can be found at:

• Privacy Guidelines for the Medicare Benefits and Pharmaceutical Benefits Programs

The Privacy Commissioner has also approved mandatory Guidelines issued by the National Health and Medical Research Council under sections 95 and 95A of the Privacy Act:

• Medical Research - Guidelines under section 95 of the Privacy Act 1988
• Medical Research - Guidelines approved under section 95A of the Privacy Act 1988

The section 95 Guidelines set out the privacy standards applicable to the conduct of human medical research in Australia. The section 95A Guidelines govern the collection, use and disclosure or personal medical information in relation to the conduct of research, the compilation and analysis of statistics relevant to public health, and health service management activities.

For more information about health information and privacy see: http://www.privacy.gov.au/health/index.html