Veterans' injury care would have no cost or visit caps
Some veterans have an injury or illness the government agrees was caused by their service. The government pays for their treatment. This bill would stop that care being cut off because it reached a set cost or a set number of visits.
Official name: Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Amendment (Veterans’ Healthcare Without Caps) Bill 2026
- Veterans' care for accepted service injuries could not be capped by cost per treatment, total cost or number of visits.
- Rules about safety, quality and fraud could still apply.
- Five senators brought it, led by Senator Jacqui Lambie.
- The Senate passed it on 17 September 2026. It is now in the House of Representatives, where the government is formed.
Who it affects
- Veterans with an accepted service injury or illness: Their care could not be cut just because it cost too much, or because they had used a set number of visits.
- Doctors, physios and other health workers who treat veterans: They could keep treating a veteran without hitting a dollar or visit limit.
- The Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Commission: It runs this part of the veterans' system. Its treatment rules would have to follow the new ban on caps.
Spending caps on veterans' treatment
Sometimes the government agrees that a veteran's injury or illness was caused by military service. Then it pays for their treatment. Two laws set this out. One is the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004. The other is the Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986.
The senators who wrote this bill worry about a yearly or other fixed spending limit. They say it could make care depend on paperwork, not on what the veteran needs. They say this is true even if there is a way to ask for more. They say caps add stress and forms for veterans and the people who treat them.
On the same day, Senator Ross Cadell brought a separate bill on the same topic. His notes say the 2026-27 Budget announced a $5,000 yearly limit on some veterans' care from 1 July 2027. This care is from health workers such as physios and psychologists.
This bill goes wider. It covers all treatment for accepted injuries. It also bans limits on the number of visits.
The senators say the bill helps carry out recommendations 71 and 72 of the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide. A Royal Commission is the top level of public investigation in Australia.
Who brought the bill
This is a private bill. That means the government did not bring it. Five senators brought it together. They are Jacqui Lambie, David Pocock, Fatima Payman, David Shoebridge and Lidia Thorpe.
No caps on care
The bill adds a new section 303A to the main law on paying veterans for service injuries. It covers treatment for an injury or disease under both veterans' laws. The government could add other kinds of treatment in detailed rules it writes without a new vote.
The section says a veteran's right to treatment cannot be limited in any of these ways. There can be no top cost for a single treatment, or for one kind of treatment. There can be no top total cost over a period, such as a year. There can be no top number of visits or treatments over a period.
The bill says this applies to a limit "however described". That means a limit cannot get around the ban by using a different name.
The bill gives an example. The Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Commission runs this part of the veterans' system. If you have a right to treatment, it cannot refuse to arrange it just because it costs more than a set amount.
Say you are a veteran with a knee injury from service. Your physio says you need 20 sessions this year. A rule saying you only get 12 a year could not apply to you.
What can still be checked
The bill does not stop all conditions on treatment. Rules about whether care suits the person, and about quality and safety, can still apply.
Fair steps to catch fraud, abuse or bad conduct by health providers can also stay.
The Commission writes the Treatment Principles. That is the rule book for what care is covered. A small change to section 286 says those rules must now fit with the new ban on caps.
Waiting in the House
The law would start the day after the Governor-General, the King's representative, signs it. It would apply to any treatment a veteran has a right to from that day. That includes veterans whose injury was accepted years before.
The bill was brought to the Senate, Parliament's second house, on 15 September 2026. The Senate debated it on 17 September 2026 and passed it the same day.
It went to the House of Representatives on 17 September 2026. The House must now debate it and vote on it. If the House passes it, the Governor-General must then sign it for it to become law.
How they voted
| Vote | Result |
|---|---|
| Vote to bring it in House of Representatives, 17 September 2026 Labor 85 aye, Liberal 16 no, LNP 10 no, Nationals 7 no, Independent 5 no, Greens 1 no, One Nation 1 no | Ayes won 85 to 40 |
| Vote on the main idea Senate, 17 September 2026 Labor 19 no, Liberal 11 aye, Greens 10 aye, One Nation 4 aye, LNP 2 aye, Nationals 2 aye, Independent 2 aye, Country Liberal 1 aye, Australia's Voice 1 aye, Lambie Network 1 aye | Ayes won 34 to 19 |
| Final vote Senate, 17 September 2026 Labor 19 no, Liberal 11 aye, Greens 10 aye, One Nation 4 aye, Nationals 2 aye, Independent 2 aye, LNP 1 aye, Country Liberal 1 aye, Australia's Voice 1 aye, Lambie Network 1 aye | Ayes won 33 to 19 |
Its journey through Parliament
| 15 Sep 2026 | Senate: Introduced and read a first time |
| 15 Sep 2026 | Senate: Second reading moved |
| 17 Sep 2026 | Senate: Second reading debate |
| 17 Sep 2026 | Senate: Second reading agreed to |
| 17 Sep 2026 | Senate: Third reading agreed to |
| 17 Sep 2026 | House of Representatives: Introduced and read a first time |