COMPULSORY PROFESSIONAL INDEMNITY INSURANCE

FOR DENTAL PROSTHETISTS

Effective from 27 October 2007

1. Section 25 of the Health Care Liability Act 2001 provides that a dental prosthetist is not entitled to practise in New South Wales without professional indemnity insurance coverage, unless that person falls within an exempt category, as detailed at clause 7 or 8 of the Health Care Regulation 2007.

2. Section 25 of the Act also provides that practising as a dental prosthetist without being covered by professional indemnity insurance, unless exempt from that requirement under the regulations is, for the purposes of the Dental Technicians Registration Act 1975, unsatisfactory professional conduct.

3 The legislation further prescribes that the NSW Dental Technicians Registration Board must not register a person as a dental prosthetist unless it is satisfied that the person will, whilst practising in New South Wales, be covered by professional indemnity insurance or fall within an exempt category. Further, the Board may cancel or suspend the person’s registration if it is satisfied that the person is neither covered by professional indemnity insurance nor exempt, whilst practising in New South Wales.

4 Accordingly, the Dental Technicians Registration Board requires all persons who apply for, or renew their registration, to provide satisfactory evidence of their insurance coverage or a declaration pertaining to their exempt status.

5. To assist practitioners with these requirements, Section 25 of the Health Care Liability Act 2001 and clauses 6 to 8 of the Health Care Liability Regulation 2007 are reproduced below:

HEALTH CARE LIABILITY ACT 2001

Section 25:

Professional indemnity insurance for certain other health practitioners

(1) This section applies to or in respect of a person who is a health practitioner only if the regulations have declared that this section applies to the class of health practitioner of which the person is a member.

(2) A person is not entitled to practise as a health practitioner unless the person is covered by professional indemnity insurance.

(3) Accordingly, the appropriate registration authority:

(a) must not register a person as a health practitioner unless the authority is satisfied that the person will, while practising as a health practitioner, be covered by professional indemnity insurance, and

(b) may cancel or suspend the registration of a person as a health practitioner if the authority is satisfied that the person is not covered by professional indemnity insurance while the person is practising as a health practitioner.

(4) Practising as a health practitioner without being covered by professional indemnity insurance is, for the purposes of the relevant health registration Act, unsatisfactory professional conduct.

(5) This section does not apply in respect of a health practitioner who is exempt under the regulations from the requirement for professional indemnity insurance.

(6) This section has effect despite the relevant health registration Act under which a health practitioner is registered.

(7) In this section:
"appropriate registration authority", in relation to a health practitioner, means the person or body who has the function, under the relevant health registration Act, of determining any matter relating to the registration of the health practitioner under the health registration Act.
"relevant health registration Act", in relation to a health practitioner, means the Act under which the health practitioner is registered or is otherwise entitled to practise.

HEALTH CARE LIABILITY REGULATION 2007 - REG 6

6 Classes of health practitioner required to be covered by professional indemnity insurance

Section 25 of the Act applies to the following classes of health practitioner:

HEALTH CARE LIABILITY REGULATION 2007 - REG 7

7 Exemption from insurance requirement

(1) In accordance with section 25 (5) of the Act, the following health practitioners are exempt from the requirement for professional indemnity insurance:

(a) a person whose registration as a health practitioner is subject to the condition that the person does not practise,

(b) a health practitioner who practises primarily outside New South Wales and who is covered by professional indemnity insurance of any kind while practising in New South Wales,

(c) a health practitioner whose practice is limited to the rendering of assistance, in the practitioner’s capacity as a health practitioner, on a voluntary basis in emergency situations,

(d) a health practitioner who practises in the course of being:

(i) employed by another person, or

(ii) engaged by another person under some contractual arrangement,

(e) a health practitioner whose practice does not include the provision of health care or of an opinion given in the practitioner’s capacity as a health practitioner in respect of the physical or mental health of any person,

(f) a health practitioner who, while practising, is covered by an indemnity arrangement established or entered into by the State or the Commonwealth to cover civil liability,

(g) a health practitioner who, while practising in accordance with a function conferred or imposed by or under any State or Commonwealth Act or regulation, does not, under that Act or regulation, incur any personal liability.

(2) An exemption under subclause (1) (b)-(g) applies to a health practitioner only to the extent to which the health practitioner practises in the circumstances described in the exemption concerned.

(3) Without limiting subclause (2), the exemption under subclause (1) (d) applies only in relation to a health practitioner:

(a) to the extent that the health practitioner is practising as an employee of, or under contract to, the other person, and

(b) to the extent that the health practitioner is indemnified, under an insurance policy issued to the other person, for civil liability arising out of the provision of, or failure to provide, health care by the health practitioner, and

(c) if the other person is not the health practitioner’s practice company.

HEALTH CARE LIABILITY REGULATION 2007 - REG 8

8 Exemption for limited period after cessation of insurer’s business

(1) If a health practitioner ceases to be covered by professional indemnity insurance as a consequence of the cessation of business of the insurer who provided the insurance, the health practitioner is, in accordance with section 25 (5) of the Act, exempt from the requirement for professional indemnity insurance but only for a period of no more than 3 months (or such longer period as the Minister may specify by order published in the Gazette) commencing on the date on which the health practitioner ceased to be so covered.

(2) The reference in subclause (1) to the cessation of business of an insurer includes a reference to the appointment of a liquidator, administrator or controller (within the meaning of the Corporations Act 2001 of the Commonwealth) in respect of the insurer’s business.

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