This bill is currently before Parliament.
Budget, tax & economy
Medical device companies would no longer have their National Joint Replacement RegistryA national collection of hospital information about joint replacement surgery, used to help improve the quality of patient care. levyA charge imposed on medical device companies to recover some of the registry's administration costs. capped at $5,000 for each listed device in a financial yearA 12-month accounting period beginning on 1 July..
The government says the current $5,000 cap means small and medium-sized medical device companies carry a disproportionate share of the registry's cost, while companies supplying large volumes pay comparatively less. It says removing the cap would distribute the levyA charge imposed on medical device companies to recover some of the registry's administration costs. according to the number of devices supplied. The government also says the registry will become more important as demand for joint replacements grows with an ageing population and increasing rates of chronic disease and obesity.
Since 2009, the National Joint Replacement RegistryA national collection of hospital information about joint replacement surgery, used to help improve the quality of patient care. has collected information on joint replacement surgery, with its administration supported by a Commonwealth grant and costs recovered through a capped levyA charge imposed on medical device companies to recover some of the registry's administration costs. on medical device companies. The government says the $5,000 cap makes smaller and medium-sized companies pay disproportionately, so after a 2026 cost-recovery consultation it introduced a bill on 17 September 2026 to remove the cap and base the levyA charge imposed on medical device companies to recover some of the registry's administration costs. on devices supplied from 1 July 2027.
The evidence pack does not contain criticism of the bill from an opposition or crossbench speaker. Its only recorded debate material presents the government's case before the debate was adjourned.
The government introduced this bill. Supportive speeches so far have come from Labor.
Did it become law?
Not yet
Final passage
No final vote yet
The bill has not yet completed passage through Parliament.
Days since introduction
19 days
Updated 06 Oct 2026.
Meaning
Medical device companies would no longer have their National Joint Replacement RegistryA national collection of hospital information about joint replacement surgery, used to help improve the quality of patient care. levyA charge imposed on medical device companies to recover some of the registry's administration costs. capped at $5,000 for each listed device in a financial yearA 12-month accounting period beginning on 1 July..
The levyA charge imposed on medical device companies to recover some of the registry's administration costs. would instead reflect the actual number of devices each company supplies. This means companies supplying larger volumes would carry a larger share of the cost.
The change would apply to levies on recorded joint replacement devices from the financial yearA 12-month accounting period beginning on 1 July. beginning 1 July 2027, and every later financial yearA 12-month accounting period beginning on 1 July..
The change would begin 28 days after Royal AssentThe formal approval required before a bill becomes an Act.. That delay would allow the levyA charge imposed on medical device companies to recover some of the registry's administration costs. rules to be updated.
The government says the change would have no financial impact on the Commonwealth. The registry would continue to be funded through a Commonwealth grant, with its administration costs recovered through the levyA charge imposed on medical device companies to recover some of the registry's administration costs..
The Bill will remove the cap of $5,000 from the NJRR Levy Act that can be imposed per medical device listed on the Prescribed List of Medical Devices and Human Tissue products for a financial year. With this change the levy will be allocated in proportion to the actual volume of devices supplied by medical device companies creating a fairer and more equitable distribution of the levy.Private Health Insurance (National Joint Replacement Register Levy) Amendment explanatory memorandum
Private Health Insurance (National Joint Replacement Register Levy) Amendment Bill 2026 is to remove the $5,000 levy cap per device per financial year. By eliminating the cap, the amendment ensures the levy is allocated in proportion to the actual volume of devices supplied by the medical device companies. The existing levy cap has resulted in smaller and medium-sized medical device companies bearing a disproportionate share of the financial burden while companies that supply large volumes of devices pay comparatively less. Removing the cap will ensure the levy is allocated in proportion toSecond reading speech
2 Application of amendment The amendment made by this Schedule applies in relation to the total amount of national joint replacement register levy imposed on recordings on the register of the provision of a joint replacement device for the financial year beginning on 1 July 2027 and each later financial year.Private Health Insurance (National Joint Replacement Register Levy) Amendment introduced text
This clause sets out when the Bill commences. The 28th day after the Act receives the Royal Assent was selected to allow time for the Private Health Insurance (National Joint Replacement Register Levy) Rules 2026 to be updated to remove reference to the $5,000 cap in the calculation of the levy.Private Health Insurance (National Joint Replacement Register Levy) Amendment explanatory memorandum
The administration of the NJRR is funded through a Commonwealth Grants Agreement which is efficiently cost recovered through the imposition of a levy under the NJRR Levy Act. There is no financial impact on the Commonwealth if the Bill is passed.Private Health Insurance (National Joint Replacement Register Levy) Amendment explanatory memorandum
Context
Since 2009, the National Joint Replacement RegistryA national collection of hospital information about joint replacement surgery, used to help improve the quality of patient care. has collected information on joint replacement surgery, with its administration supported by a Commonwealth grant and costs recovered through a capped levyA charge imposed on medical device companies to recover some of the registry's administration costs. on medical device companies. The government says the $5,000 cap makes smaller and medium-sized companies pay disproportionately, so after a 2026 cost-recovery consultation it introduced a bill on 17 September 2026 to remove the cap and base the levyA charge imposed on medical device companies to recover some of the registry's administration costs. on devices supplied from 1 July 2027.
National registry levyA charge imposed on medical device companies to recover some of the registry's administration costs. system established
The National Joint Replacement RegistryA national collection of hospital information about joint replacement surgery, used to help improve the quality of patient care. began operating under a levyA charge imposed on medical device companies to recover some of the registry's administration costs. system that recovers administration costs alongside Commonwealth grant funding.
Private Health Insurance (National Joint Replacement Register Levy) Amendment explanatory memorandum ↗Government reviews how the registry levyA charge imposed on medical device companies to recover some of the registry's administration costs. is shared
A cost-recovery statement was consulted on from 22 January to 5 February, with the final statement and departmental response published on 12 March.
Private Health Insurance (National Joint Replacement Register Levy) Amendment explanatory memorandum ↗Government introduces the levyA charge imposed on medical device companies to recover some of the registry's administration costs. amendment bill
The government introduced the bill to remove the $5,000 cap and apply the levyA charge imposed on medical device companies to recover some of the registry's administration costs. according to the number of devices supplied from the financial yearA 12-month accounting period beginning on 1 July. beginning 1 July 2027.
Parliamentary timeline ↗Legislative route
The bill was formally presented to the chamber and read a first time, which starts its parliamentary journey.
Introduced and read a first time
A minister or sponsoring member moved the second reading, opening the main debate on the bill's purpose and principles.
Second reading moved
Referred to Committee (17/09/2026): Senate Community Affairs Legislation Committee; Report due 16/10/2026
Report due 16 Oct 2026
APH bill page notesKey criticism
The evidence pack does not contain criticism of the bill from an opposition or crossbench speaker. Its only recorded debate material presents the government's case before the debate was adjourned.
The government's case is that removing the $5,000 cap would make the levyA charge imposed on medical device companies to recover some of the registry's administration costs. fairer by linking each company's contribution to the volume of devices it supplies.
Further sources
Votes
No recorded votes have been found yet for this bill.
Parliamentary debate
Start here — lead voices
Wells supports the bill because removing the levyA charge imposed on medical device companies to recover some of the registry's administration costs. cap will make medical device companies contribute according to the volume of devices they supply, distributing the cost more fairly while supporting the joint replacement registry and patient safety.
Read in Hansard ↗All speeches by bloc
1 speaker · 1 support
“Removing the cap will ensure the levy is allocated in proportion to the actual volume of devices supplied by medical device companies, creating a fairer and more equitable distribution of the levy.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
Record
House · Introduced and read a first time
Introduced
The bill was formally presented to the chamber and read a first time, which starts its parliamentary journey.
House · Second reading moved
Second reading opened
A minister or sponsoring member moved the second reading, opening the main debate on the bill's purpose and principles.
Senate Community Affairs Legislation Committee
Report due 16 Oct 2026
Referred to Committee (17 Sept 2026): Senate Community Affairs Legislation Committee; Report due 16 Oct 2026
APH bill page notes