Better health and ageing for all Australians

Private health insurance

Prostheses List Advisory Committee

The Prostheses List Advisory Committee members

In this section:

The Prostheses List Advisory Committee (PLAC) was established and members and the chair were appointed by the Minister for Health and Ageing on 4 October 2010. The PLAC replaces the Prostheses and Devices Committee (PDC) that was established on 14 July 2004.

Its primary role is to advise the Minister about the listing of prostheses and their appropriate benefits in the Prostheses List. The List is made under the Private Health Insurance Act 2007 and the Private Health Insurance (Prostheses) Rules which require private health insurers to pay benefits for those prostheses.

The Prostheses List arrangements, the PLAC and its predecessor, the PDC, were established to control inflation in private health insurance benefits paid for prostheses. The Prostheses List plays an important role in ensuring the sustainability of the Australian private health insurance system, and helps to achieve the Government’s policy objective of ensuring private health insurance remains affordable and accessible to all Australians.

The new committee is comprised of an independent Chair, with members having expertise in current clinical practice, health insurance, consumer health, health economics, health policy, private hospitals and the medical device industry.

The PLAC members are:
Professor John Horvath (Chair)
Associate Professor Bill Heddle
Associate Professor Bruce Love
Associate Professor David Morgan
Dr Janet Wale
Associate Professor Philip Clarke
Ms Colleen McGann
Ms Michele Vanest
Mr Paul Fitzmaurice
Ms Michelle Somlyay (on leave)
Ms Judith Wenborn
Mr David Ross
Professor Anne Simmons
Professor Helen Lapsley
Ms Letitia Hope
Mr Will Hanham

The terms of reference and business rules for the PLAC are included at appendix B to Part 1 of the Prostheses List Guide.

PLAC Bulletins

The purpose of PLAC Bulletins is to provide stakeholders to the prostheses arrangements with information which may be relevant to them for the current and future Prostheses Lists.

The Bulletins (including PDC Bulletins) are provided below:
Bulletins

Clinical Advisory Groups and Panel of Clinical Experts

The PLAC is supported by Clinical Advisory Groups (CAGs) and a Panel of Clinical Experts. These groups provide clinical advice on their areas of expertise:
  • the Panel of Clinical Experts for neurosurgical, plastic and reconstructive, ear/nose/throat, and general and miscellaneous prostheses;
  • the Cardiac Prostheses Clinical Advisory Group;
  • the Cardiothoracic Prostheses Clinical Advisory Group;
  • the Hip Prostheses Clinical Advisory Group;
  • the Knee Prostheses Clinical Advisory Group;
  • the Ophthalmic Prostheses Clinical Advisory Group;
  • the Specialist Orthopaedic Clinical Advisory Group for orthopaedic prostheses excluding hip, knee and spinal prostheses;
  • the Spinal Prostheses Clinical Advisory Group;
  • the Urogenital Prostheses Clinical Advisory Group; and
  • the Vascular Prostheses Clinical Advisory Group.
Further information about the CAGs and PoCE can be found in Part 1 of the Prostheses List Guide.

Negotiating Oversight Committee

The Negotiating Oversight Committee (NOC) provides advice about benefits for listed prostheses and new applications.
Terms of reference, membership and operating procedures for the NOC will be developed by the PLAC.
Current members of the NOC have been nominated by and are employed by the AHIA and were appointed by the PDC, the then advisory committee.