People who alert regulators to concerns about health practitioners will now have greater protection under changes to the National Law.
The changes guard against any attempted reprisals, and make it an offence to threaten, intimidate, dismiss, refuse to employ or otherwise discriminate against someone involved in a complaint to the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra) and the National Boards.
The maximum penalty is $60,000 for an individual or $120,000 for a body corporate. Disciplinary action can also be taken against practitioners.
People are free to complain despite any clause in a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) they may have previously signed to resolve issues. It is now an offence to enter into an agreement that does not set that out in writing.
“No one can make you sign away your right to make a complaint about a practitioner,” Ahpra CEO Justin Untersteiner said.
“Ahpra’s number one priority is to prevent harm, and to do that we need all the available evidence and information. We expect the support and cooperation of all involved when it comes to public safety.
“While reprisals are, thankfully, uncommon, we will not hesitate to prosecute anyone who threatens notifiers or witnesses acting in good faith.”
The new protections came into effect in all Australian states and territories on 1 December*.
The measures follow an independent review of the regulation of medical practitioners who perform cosmetic surgery. The 2022 report found NDAs were being used to impede investigations even though they were legally unenforceable.
In 2024/25, Ahpra received 13,327 notifications about practitioners. That was 19% more than the previous year, and the largest increase since the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme began in 2010.
Ahpra has policies against vexatious complaints and has been working to minimise the distress caused by the notifications process, including through more efficient assessments. The number of matters finalised in 2024/25 was 8.3% higher than the year before, with the average time to close a notification the lowest recorded since the National Scheme began in 2010.
Another change to the National Law will see additional information published on the register where a practitioner has been found by a tribunal to have engaged in professional misconduct involving sexual misconduct. That change will come into effect in early 2026 and will apply retrospectively for registered practitioners.
Health ministers decided on the changes to the National Law in 2024 and legislative amendments were passed earlier this year.
Ahpra has embarked on a comprehensive consultation process to guide the implementation of the register changes. The changes will include new measures for practitioners who meet the criteria but are not currently registered, to be applied if they reapply for registration.
The Ahpra website has further information about the complaints process, and the support available to notifiers, including those with concerns about sexual misconduct by a practitioner.
*In South Australia, subject to proclamation of relevant regulation.
