The Federal Department of Health has appointed Commonwealth public servant David Weiss (pictured above left) as acting Aged Care Pricing Commissioner until the sector’s new Pricing Authority is operating.
Mr Weiss, who most recently has been running the Commonwealth Department of Health’s State Network and Medical Benefits Division and also worked in the Therapeutic Goods Administration, replaces John Dicer (above right) whose three-year term as Pricing Commissioner ended in May.
The office of the Aged Care Pricing Commissioner was established in 2013 to help ensure that aged care residents were not over charged for their places.
The appointment is an interim measure while a new Pricing Authority recommended by the royal commission is established. The royal commission envisaged incorporating the oversight of accommodation prices into a body with broader functions, a spokesperson for the health department said.
The Government has accepted Royal Commissioner Lynelle Briggs’ recommendation to expand the Hospital Pricing Authority to establish an Independent Hospital and Aged Care Pricing Authority as opposed to Royal Commissioner Tony Pagone’s recommendation for a separate pricing authority for aged care.
