| Senate inquiry launched into Superannuation Clearing House legislation |
 |
 |
 |
|
February 25, 2010 Rudd Government plans to give Medicare the contract to manage a Superannuation Clearing House will be the subject of a Senate inquiry, Shadow Minister Consumer Affairs, Financial Services, Superannuation and Corporate Law Luke Hartsuyker said today.The Senate this week referred the Bills to the Senate Economics Committee. “I welcome the decision to send the Superannuation Clearing House provisions to the Senate Economics Committee for inquiry,” Mr Hartsuyker said. “The Rudd Labor Government’s plan to implement a Clearing House has involved delays, mismanagement and yet another broken promise. The Government promised to implement a clearing house by July 1 2009 and indicated to the superannuation sector that the house would be contracted to the private sector. “However, Minister Bowen announced in November 2009 that Medicare will be the preferred provider and $16.1 million has been set aside in the budget. There is a lot of speculation that Medicare does not represent the most effective and efficient option to delivering these services. Under the legislation Medicare will also have a competitive advantage over private clearing houses. “The Senate inquiry will allow these issues to be discussed, and will also give Medicare an opportunity to answer questions about whether it is capable of handling the clearing house under the Government’s timeframe and budget.”
|