The Commonwealth Privacy Act 1988 applies to federal government bodies and private health service providers. States and territories, other than South Australia and Western Australia, also have Acts dealing with the protection of health information. In South Australia, Cabinet has issued Information Privacy Principles which apply to government agencies. Every jurisdiction now has a dedicated commissioner, ombudsman or committee to handle complaints relating to breaches of privacy, as do registration boards and health complaints agencies. Generally speaking, federal and state laws are consistent; however, the lack of a national scheme has been identified as a matter requiring reform.
National
Australian Information Commissioner
ACT
NSW
Information and Privacy Commission NSW
Health and Records and Information Privacy Act 2002
NT
Office of the Information Commissioner Northern Territory
Health and Community Services Complaints Commission Information Act 2002
QLD
The Office of the Information Commissioner Queensland – may refer privacy complaint to Health Ombudsman
Information Privacy Act 2009 – Must comply with National Privacy Principles
SA
South Australian Privacy Committee
Health and Community Services Complaints Commissioner
PC012 Information Privacy Principles (IPPS) Instructions
TAS
Personal Information and Protection Act 2004
VIC
Health Complaints Commissioner
WA
Office of the Information Commissioner – Only FOI requests
Health and Disability Services Complaints Office
Freedom of Information Act 1992
Page last updated October 2022