Bill Debate · Second Reading
Senate · Wednesday 12 February 2025
Continued from Tuesday 4 February 2025.
Official Hansard for this day (APH) · Read this debate on OpenAustralia
The Senate debated the principles of the bill, which aims to modernise the My Health Record system by changing it to a sharing-by-default model. Katy Gallagher introduced an addendum to the explanatory memorandum addressing concerns from scrutiny committees. Malcolm Roberts and Lidia Thorpe moved amendments expressing opposition to the default sharing model and highlighting issues regarding prison healthcare and privacy. Both amendments were defeated, and the bill was not passed on the divisions.
The bill was not passed, with divisions resulting in votes of 12-23 and 14-23 against it.
Summary in reported speech - not a transcript. AI-generated, so check the official record before quoting.
Continued the debate
Gallagher tabled an addendum to the explanatory memorandum for the bill. The document addressed matters raised by the Scrutiny of Bills Committee and the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights. This action served to clarify the government's response to parliamentary scrutiny before the debate proceeded.
Roberts moved an amendment stating that Australians were concerned about privacy and security implications of centralised digital IDs. The amendment argued that the original promise of a voluntary opt-in system was being breached by default sharing of sensitive medical information. The question on the amendment was negated.
Thorpe moved two amendments. The first noted barriers to accessing medical records for people in prisons and called for improved continuity of care and privacy protections. The second sought to increase Medicare benefits for professional services given to incarcerated individuals or those who had recently been released. Both amendments were defeated.