Acute Care Division (ACD)

This page outlines the roles and responsibilities of the Acute Care Division (ACD) of the Department of Health and Ageing.

The Acute Care Division of the Department of Health and Ageing helps the Australian Government achieve its overall objective of providing all Australians with access to cost effective and high quality health care services.

This is achieved by ensuring Australians have access to public hospitals, related hospital care and medical services underpinned by appropriate medical indemnity arrangements.

The Acute Care Division of the Department of Health and Ageing is responsible for administering:

• Australian Health Care Agreements
• Private health insurance
• Medical indemnity
• Blood supplies
• Organ donation

Key strategic directions for 2006-07 include:

• implementing the recommendations of the 2006 Medical Indemnity Policy Panel;
• Implement the changes announced by the Government in April 2006 to establish greater choice in Private health Insurance;
• contributing to the objectives of the National Blood Agreement through funding for the provision of blood and plasma products;
• commencing a review of Australia'a plasma fractionation arrangements as required by the Free Trade Agreement with the United States;
• develop and implement strategies to improve the rate of organ and tissue donation;
• continue to work with state and territory governments on improving the quality of the National Minimum Data Sets for admitted patients, emergency departments, outpatients and rehabilitation/step-down care:
• funding state and territory governments to secure the provision of free public hospital services; and
• further developing national minumum data sets for hospital and non-hospital care, particularly in the areas of emergency department, outpatient and rehabilitation/step-down care.