The Independent Health and Aged Care Pricing Authority (IHACPA) is a Commonwealth Corporate Entity responsible for the development and licensing of the AR-DRG Classification System (the System) incorporating the ICD-10-AM/ACHI/ACS.
The System has a significant commercial value to IHACPA and the Australian Government, and the intellectual property in the System must be protected.
ECLs are a collection of comma separated value (.csv) files that are used in the development of software or are integrated into existing patient software using the ICD-10-AM and ACHI codes for private or commercial purposes.
To use the ECLs an appropriate licence must be in place with IHACPA.
The ECLs licence types that are available are:
- Software Developer
- Organisation ECL
- Research ECL
- Charity/Not-for-Profit Organisation ECL
- Australian Government entities – both Federal and State
Software Developer
The Software Developer licence will allow the licensee the right to access up to and including the most current edition of the Electronic Code Lists (ECLs) for the ICD-10-AM (diagnoses) and the ACHI (interventions) to then use the ECLs to develop and sell AR-DRG software products within Australia or other countries that are licensed for use of the System.
The current list of licence countries is available at on the IHACPA website
Software developers can develop software products for the System such as:
- Billing tools
- Electronic medical record systems
- Coding products and
- other e-tools.
The Software Developer Licence Agreement term is indefinite and grants access up to and including the current edition of ICD-10-AM and ACHI but does not grant access to future editions. A new Software Developer Licence Agreement is required to access any and all future editions when they become available.
The cost of a software developer agreement is in the table below:
| Type of Software Developer Licence | Licence fee – payable to IHACPA | Cost of ECLs – purchased from website, once account is approved |
|---|---|---|
| Software vendor (Australian small business entity – as defined by the Australian Tax Office) | AU$2,000 (ex.GST) |
|
| Software vendor (Australian non-small business entity – as defined by the Australian Tax Office) | AU$11,250 (ex.GST) |
|
| Overseas entities | AU$11,250 |
|
Organisation ECL
The Organisation ECL licence is primarily for Australian based organisations seeking to use the ECLs for internal and non-commercial use only.
Organisation/Business entities such as health insurance companies, private hospitals or data analytics/reporters may apply for the use ECLs that can be incorporated or updating in their own local internal systems for internal use.
The cost of the Organisation ECL licence is:
| Organisation ECL licence type | Licence Fee | Cost of ECLs – purchased from sales website |
|---|---|---|
| Organisation (access by 1-20 users) | Nil |
|
| Organisation (access by 20+ users) | Nil |
|
The Organisation ECL Licence Agreement term is indefinite and grants access up to and including the current edition of ICD-10-AM and ACHI but does not grant access to future editions. A new Organisation ECL Licence Agreement is required to access any and all future editions when they become available.
Research ECL
Educational institutions or independent entities can apply to use the ICD-10-AM and the ACHI Electronic Code Lists (ECLs) for research or academic purposes through entering into a Research ECL Licence Agreement with IHACPA.
There is no cost for a Research ECL licence agreement and once an ECL agreement has been executed, IHACPA provides the ECLs directly to the entity without cost.
This includes the ICD-10-AM and ACHI code list but not any mapping files. To purchase the Mapping files, please sign-in or create an account. An ECL Agreement is not granted directly to individuals but only to legal entities.
The Research ECL agreement is available to both Australian and overseas based researchers for consideration.
Australian Researchers:
Researchers and academic institutions undertaking valid research requiring the use of ECLs can apply for an ECL Licence Agreement free of charge and are entitled to receive the ECLs for free.
Australian researchers and academic institutions must enter into an Academic/Research ECL Licence Agreement with IHACPA and all persons accessing the ECLs must sign individual Deeds of Confidentiality.
Overseas Researchers access to ECLs.
Licensed Countries:
Overseas researchers can either be licenced from IHACPA or the licensed country that may choose to sublicense the ECL’s to the researcher directly.
Unlicensed Countries:
Researchers from unlicensed countries may approach IHACPA for access to the ECLs to undertake research which IHACPA may permit under an Academic/Research ECL Licence Agreement with IHACPA. This can include undertaking research and compare coded data across multiple classification systems.
Researchers and academic institutions must enter into an Academic/Research ECL Licence Agreement with IHACPA and all persons accessing the ECLs must sign individual Deeds of Confidentiality.
The Research ECL Licence Agreement term is indefinite and grants access up to and including the current edition of ICD-10-AM and ACHI but does not grant access to future editions. A new Research ECL Licence Agreement is required to access any and all future editions when they become available.
Charity/Not-for-Profit ECL
Charity/Not-for-profit organisations within Australia are able to obtain the ECLs free of charge for the strict use of the ECLs within Australia for internal and non-commercial use only.
IHACPA verifies the Charity/Non-for-profit status by cross referencing the ABN of the entity with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) register.
For Charity/Not-for-profit organisations, once an ECL agreement has been executed, IHACPA provides the ECLs directly to the entity without cost. This includes the ICD-10-AM and ACHI code list but not any mapping files. To purchase the Mapping files, please sign-in or create an account.
The Charity/Not-for-Profit ECL Licence Agreement term is indefinite and grants access up to and including the current edition of ICD-10-AM and ACHI but does not grant access to future editions. A new Charity/Not-for-Profit ECL Licence Agreement is required to access any and all future editions when they become available.
Australian Government entities – both state and federal
ECL products can be provided to Australian Government entities – both state and federal to undertake mandatory reporting to state and national government databases for no cost.
This includes the ICD-10-AM and ACHI code lists and mapping files.
State/Territory Government departments are also granted the additional right to sub-licence the ECLs to entities required to report data to the government entity, such as hospitals and local health/hospital networks.
The Government Licence Agreement term is indefinite and grants access up to and including the current edition of ICD-10-AM and ACHI but does not grant access to future editions. A new Government Licence Agreement is required to access any and all future editions when they become available.