The Senate has launched a inquiry into the Government's proposal to establish the $20 billion Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF).
The Senate launched the inquiry into the Medical Research Future Fund Bill 2015 and the Medical Research Future Fund (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2015 last week, referring both to the Senate Community Affairs Legislation Committee.
While the Government plans to establish the MRFF on 1 August, the inquiry is not due to report until 10 August, meaning it is almost certain to be delayed.
The Bill has passed the House of Representatives, with amendments.
During debate in the House, Labor expressed concern over the proposed administration of the MRFF, with the original Bill not including any formal independent mechanism, or peer reviewed oversight of its distributions.
The Government responded by tabling some amendments to the Bill, including the creation of an Australian Medical Research Advisory Board, consisting of the CEO of the NHMRC and seven other appointees.
The Board will be responsible for developing a five year Medical Research and Innovation Strategy. It will also develop Medical Research and Innovation priorities, which will be updated every two years. The Minister will consider the Strategy and Priorities in making funding decisions.
The amendments also shift responsibility for allocating funds under the MRFF from the Finance Minster to the Health Minister.
Originally announced in last year's Budget, the MRFF has attracted significant controversy because its creation is funded through a series of savings measures in the health portfolio, including the scrapped Medicare GP co-payment.
Despite the political failure of some of its key funding mechanisms, the MRFF is expected to reach its $20 billion target by 2020 on the back of higher than expected savings from other measures.
Once fully established, the MRFF is expected to add around $1 billion per year to existing Government support for health and medical research.
Submissions to the inquiry are due by 10 July.