AN increasing number of General Practitioners are ditching bulk billing. Following a HealthEd survey, it was found that 22 percent of GPs had changed their billing model, meaning patients are facing higher out-of-pocket costs to see a doctor.
Rising practice costs and Medicare cuts were listed as key reasons for the billing changes. President of The Royal Australian College of General Practice (RACGP), Adj. Professor Karen Price says, “General practice is up against it, and unless government boosts investment in GP care, more and more practices will be forced to pass the cost on to patients.”
With the previous federal government touting a record high of 88 percent in the national bulk billing rate, the Minister for Health and Aged Care, Mark Butler says the devil is in the detail.
“There is a difference between the proportion of GP services that are bulk billed and the proportion of patients who had all their GP consults bulk billed…the proportion of patients who had all their GP care bulk billed was just 67.6 percent.”
Ms Price asserts that investment in general practice is sorely needed and it is not an easy decision for practices having to pass on increased costs to their patients, especially at a time when the basket of consumer goods is so high.
“The federal government could ease the pressure on practices by boosting investment,” Ms Price says, “…and this will have a lasting impact on the health and wellbeing of people…resulting in fewer patients ending up in a hospital bed.”
