Health ref. no. 804 AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENT HEALTH INSURANCE ACT 1973 Health Insurance (Eligible persons and holders of Removal Pending Bridging visa) Order 2017 I, GREG HUNT, Minister for Health, pursuant to subsection 6(1) of the Health Insurance Act 1973 (the Act) hereby DECLARE that: (a) Every person included in the specified class of persons: 1. a lawful non-citizen residing in Australia; and 2. a holder of a valid Removal Pending Bridging Visa (Subclass 070) issued under the Migration Act 1958; being a person who, but for this Order, would not be an eligible person for the purposes of the Act shall, during any period in which the person is in Australia, be treated as being an eligible person for the purposes of the Act, according to the dates specified in the current Schedule. (b) This Order shall have effect from the date of signature. Dated this 26th day of October 2017 GREG HUNT MINISTER FOR HEALTH ATTACHMENT - STATEMENT OF REASONS Health Insurance Act 1973 Class order subsection 6(1) ORDER NO: 804 DATE OF ORDER: 2017 RELATED ORDERS: Individual orders: 585, 589, 590, 594, 595, 599, 606, 607, 608, 609, 610, 614, 619, 624, 625, 629, 639, 652, 677, 678, 680, 686, 695, 698, 701, 705, 711, 715, 720, 733, 745, 749, 755 Class orders: 760, 773, 790 NAME OF PERSON/GROUP: Removal Pending Bridging Visa (RPBV) Subclass 070 REASON FOR APPROVAL On 22 March 2005, the Australian Government created a new visa class – the Return Pending Bridging Visa (RPBV) – that was to be inserted into the legislation on 11 May 2005. The RPBV is used for immigration detainees who have exhausted options for further protection or permanent residency and are unable to be removed from Australia. It is issued to individuals who meet strict immigration criteria and agree to leave Australia when conditions allow. As part of this decision, the Government agreed to provide Medicare access to holders of RPBVs. These people have been released from detention and will be holding an identity card – PLO 56 or immicard, which are card-like documents with their photo ID. They will also have a Removal Pending Bridging (subclass 070) grant letter. This class order supersedes the practice of issuing individual orders. The list of all RPBV holders will be updated on each occasion the Department of Immigration and Border Protection advises a new RPBV grant. Medicare eligibility will take effect from the dates specified in respect of each individual listed in the Schedule. Medicare Australia will use a common end date for eligibility, regardless of when the visas were issued, for each identification of enrolment records. Note: The name of this instrument was amended on registration as the instrument as lodged did not have a unique name (see subsection 10(2), Legislation Rule 2016).