The petition of the undersigned shows:

The Association of Independent Retirees (A.I.R.) Limited is the peak body representing the views of self-funded retirees, people who have made and continue to make a significant contribution to this nations well-being as taxpayers, volunteers and citizens.

This petition concerns the proposed inclusion of previously taxed money from superannuation ( both income streams and lump sums) in the income threshold for the Commonwealth Seniors Health Card.

The Social Security and veterans Entitlements Amendment Commonwealth Seniors Health Card Bill 2009 will have the same effect as lowering the income threshold for CSHC eligibility for those Seniors with superannuation payments as, in an unprecedented move, money from superannuation which has already been either fully or partly taxed, will now for the first time be included in the adjusted taxable income to determine eligibility for the Health Card.

The current threshold has not been increased since 2001. Not only has it not been indexed since then, but now, if this legislation is passed, it will therefore be effectively lowered for those retired people reliant on their savings, depriving many of concessional pharmaceuticals, utilities allowance, Seniors Bonus, phone allowance and discretionary hulk-billing for GP services.

At no time during the last federal election campaign was the issue of changing the eligibility criteria for the CSHC raised by the Labor Party. This proposed legislation, introduced in the first Labor Budget, therefore seeks to change these criteria without a mandate from the people.

Your petitioners ask that the Senate:

either

(a) amend the social security and veterans Entitlement (Commonwealth Seniors Health Card) Bill 2009 to exclude already taxed superannuation monies from the taxable income threshold used to determine eligibility for the commonwealth Seniors Health Card.

or

(b) failing that, reject the Bill in its current form.