Edition No.45
This edition was issued on 24 March 2023
Welcome
This edition provides an update on our Medical Services, including our progress in reducing the backlog and significant milestones achieved. There is also news from the Personal Injury Commission Rule Committee who have entered a unanimous resolution on the Additional Document Issue and Document Limitation Issue.
I will be in touch with another edition of Personal Injury Commission News soon.
President
Medical Services: Building on the Momentum of 2022
We finished 2022 in a strong position which has continued into 2023 with high clearance rates and finalisations in motor accidents medical disputes and a significant reduction in the backlog of medical disputes and matters on hand overall. In Edition 39 of this publication, we reported on our performance through to the end of October 2022 and were buoyed that the results showed we were finally turning things around and were starting to experience “clear air”. The following report provides an update on the latest figures including three major milestones at the Commission over the past few weeks.
Motor Accidents Medical Disputes Clearance Rates Remain High
Pleasingly, finalisations of medical disputes increased over 2022 and remain consistently high in the financial year to date figures (FYTD). The Commission is averaging around 420 finalisations per month with the clearance rate for the FYTD being 127% (peaking with a Jan-Feb 2023 clearance rate of 137%). Clearance rates over 100% mean that more matters are being completed than are being lodged. In short, the backlog is heading down, and we are finalising more matters than are being filed, which is extremely positive.
Importantly, not only are we finalising high numbers of medical disputes, which make up our backlog (medical disputes filed prior to 1 January 2022), we are also finalising disputes filed in 2022 as shown in the graph below (with the light and dark green differentiators, respectively). This means we will keep our 2022 medical disputes moving through the system in a timelier manner.
Data was extracted on 17 March 2023 for February 2023 EOM and is subject to change each month.
Medical Disputes Backlog is Reducing Month-on-Month
Since January 2022, the motor accidents medical disputes backlog has reduced from 4,658 disputes to 1,110 at close of business 28 February 2023 - a reduction of over 3,500 disputes. At the time of publication, we have dropped below the 1,000 backlog matters which is a significant milestone (milestone 1). We remain on track to eliminate the backlog by the third quarter of 2023.
Data was extracted on 17 March 2023 for February 2023 EOM and is subject to change each month.
More broadly speaking, the Commission has also reduced our total matters on hand for Motor Accidents Medical Disputes to below 4,000 (milestone 2) for the first time since the commencement of the Commission on 1 March 2021, which is another milestone that will over time ultimately lead to a reduction in wait time for Commission users.
Volume of Medical Assessments Scheduled has Increased
Since August 2022, the Commission has scheduled a high number of medical assessments each month in motor accidents and workers compensation matters (averaging in excess of 700 and 200 per month respectively). As foreshadowed in Edition 39, we saw a reduction in December and January for scheduled assessments due to the holiday season. Scheduled assessments have picked up again in February and March 2023 with 702 and 841 appointments scheduled respectively in motor accidents. Scheduled appointments are an important lead indicator for the resolution of disputes however there are still around 40-45% of appointments for motor accidents medical assessments being cancelled/rescheduled each month with many of these being easily avoidable. With the commencement of the SMS reminder trial last week, we anticipate the number of avoidable cancellations to reduce significantly.
In February 2023, we also undertook our 1,000th Medical Assessment in the Commission’s Medical Suites at 1 Oxford Street (milestone 3). The creation of the Medical Suites was a key strategic objective of the Commission, and it is pleasing to see the progress since we officially opened the doors in July 2022.
Conclusion
Our highest priority remains the reduction in matters on hand and the reduction in the backlog of COVID-delayed motor accidents medical disputes. A strong focus on our 2022 filed matters will also over time lead to reduced waiting times for injured persons. While delays will be with us for some time to come, Commission users will see gradual improvements in waiting times over the course of 2023. It is important to note that there will continue to be pressure and longer waiting times for injured persons requiring high use specialities, particularly in psychiatry.
We will continue to keep you abreast of our progress across the Commission and thank all Commission users for their contribution to the progress reported above.
Rule Committee – Document Limitation and Additional Document Proposal
On 15 March 2023, the Rule Committee convened and entered a unanimous resolution on the Additional Document Issue and Document Limitation Issue.
There was a validly constituted quorum for the meeting pursuant to section 19(7)(c) of the Personal Injury Commission Act 2020 (PIC Act).
Additional Document Issue
The Committee voted to amend rule 67 of the Personal Injury Commission Rules (PIC Rules) to reduce the number of interlocutory procedural decisions required to determine if additional documents will be accepted for a medical assessment.
The Committee resolved to omit rule 67(3)(d) of the PIC Rules and provide for two new pathways, which are outlined in the resolution above.
Document Limitation Issue
Over the past four to five months, the Rule Committee has been examining the problem of parties filing large quantities of either duplicate or irrelevant material in matters across both divisions. This doesn’t occur in every case, but it occurs in enough cases to be a problem for users, the legal profession and our decision-makers alike.
The Rule Committee therefore decided to closely examine this issue and ascertain whether or not, with some focussed changes to the Rules, this situation could be improved.
Submissions were called for from the Commission’s stakeholders which were very useful with regards to the Committee’s deliberations. There was broad consensus that this was a problem that needed to be dealt with.
Having considered all of the submissions and after detailed consideration, the Rule Committee reached the following decision at its meeting on 15 March 2023:
- The rules will be amended to impose a 500-page limit per party in their application and response. (This limitation applies to the evidence, it does not apply to the application or response or any legal submissions attached.)
- The rule will be changed to specifically mandate that all documents filed are to be indexed and paginated.
- The rule will prohibit the filing of multiple copies of the same document.
The 500-page limit rule change will not apply to the following types of proceedings:
Motor accidents proceedings:
- Merit review proceedings
- Merit review panel proceedings
- Medical review panel proceedings
- Presidential proceedings
- Work injury damages related proceedings
- Expedited assessment proceedings
- Medical appeal panel proceedings
The rule changes will not commence operation until Pathway (the Commission’s Single Digitial Platform) is open and operating across both Divisions.
The work of the Rule Committee on these issues has been informed by consultation with the Commission’s stakeholders. The timing of the commencement will give all users and practitioners ample time to be ready for implementation. We will now work on the mechanics of how the Rule changes will be operationalised and will inform users well ahead of commencement.
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