44 Matter affecting personal affairs

(1) Matter is exempt matter if its disclosure would disclose information concerning the personal affairs of a person, whether living or dead, unless its disclosure would, on balance, be in the public interest.

Note—
See also section 50A (Applications on behalf of children and matters affecting personal affairs of children).

(2) Matter is not exempt under subsection (1) merely because it relates to information concerning the personal affairs of the person by whom, or on whose behalf, an application for access to a document containing the matter is being made.

(3) If—

(a) an application is made to an agency or Minister for access to a document of the agency or an official document of the Minister that contains health care information concerning the applicant; and

(b) it appears to the principal officer of the agency or the Minister that the disclosure of the information to the person might be prejudicial to the physical or mental health or wellbeing of the person;

the principal officer or Minister may direct that access to the document is not to be given to the person but is to be given instead to an appropriately qualified health care professional nominated by the person and approved by the principal officer or Minister.

(4) The principal officer or Minister may appoint an appropriately qualified health care professional to make a decision under subsection (3) on behalf of the principal officer or Minister.

(5) A health care professional nominated and approved under subsection (3) may decide—

(a) whether or not to disclose all or part of the information contained in the document to the applicant; and

(b) the way in which to disclose the information to the applicant.

(6) In this section—

appropriately qualified means having the qualifications and experience appropriate to assess the health care information in the document.

health care information means information provided by a health care professional.

health care professional means a person who carries on, and is entitled to carry on, an occupation involving the provision of care for a person’s physical or mental health or wellbeing, including, for example—

(a) a doctor, including a psychiatrist; or

(b) a psychologist; or

(c) a social worker; or

(d) a registered nurse.