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The Consumer Health Forum (CHF) and the听Public Health Association of Australia (PHAA) say the Government's announcement on GP co-payment targets doctors.
鈥淭he Government鈥檚 action in slashing GPs鈥� payments by $5 is damning evidence that it is intent on turning the clock back on Medicare, away from principles of fairness and听 universal access,鈥� the CEO of the, Adam Stankevicius, says.
鈥淭he Government is turning GPs into its bagmen for the death of universal health care.
鈥淭he Government is abrogating its responsibility to set an overall policy to improve health and instead is just focusing on health financing.听 This policy simply shifts the burden to doctors and ultimately patients.听 It is claiming that financial cuts must be made to health while independent evidence indicates that the Australian health system overall performs well within international cost measures, apart from the increasingly heavy burden borne by individual consumers.
鈥淎nd it will be patients who will suffer, as many doctors will have no option but to demand the $5 from patients.听听 It will be the chronically ill, families and the elderly not covered by concessions, who will be hit hardest.
"While pensioners and other concession patients, children and veterans may still be covered by bulk billing, the squeeze on doctors鈥� income could well see a dramatic downturn in their ability to continue bulk billing which currently benefits more than 80 per cent of cases.
鈥淭he Government has also locked in a longer term freeze that will boost out of pocket health costs for Australian patients, already among the highest in the world, by imposing a three and a half year freeze on all other Medicare benefits to GPs, specialists, allied health providers and optometrists.
鈥淎nd its slashing of the time-based rebates to GPs must have the impact of driving GPs towards higher gap charges.听听听 We agree with the Government, we need to move away from 鈥楽ix-minute medicine鈥� but would welcome discussing this with the health professions and the Government,鈥� Mr Stankevicius said.
鈥淭he assertion by the Government that its underhand ploy will help make Medicare sustainable is at odds with its plans to deploy savings from the sick to fund the Medical Research Future Fund --- a plan that defies common sense and has embarrassed medical scientists.
, Michael Moore said 鈥淭his $5 cut in the Medicare Rebate is in effect a pay cut for doctors.听 Have government ministers taken a pay cut themselves?听听听 It is a deliberately targeted pay cut to GPs. This is comparable to the minimal pay increase offered to the military.鈥�
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鈥淥ur GPs are being forced to do the dirty work of the government,鈥� added Professor Yeatman, the President of the PHAA.听 鈥淓ither they lose $3billion from their own pockets over the next three and a half years or drag it from the wallets of the bulk of their patients.听 This is simply unacceptable.听 The message has been clear.听 The criticism widespread.听 A universal health care system is one that provides appropriate access to the community without distinguishing on the grounds of ability to pay鈥�.
Professor Yeatman also said the decision was not all bad news.听 鈥淎t least there is protection for the most vulnerable including pensioners, Commonwealth concession card holders, all children under the age of 16 and veterans funded through the Department of Veterans鈥� Affairs鈥�.
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鈥淚t is encouraging to see the government's initiative in reducing 鈥榮ix minute medicine鈥�, said Mr Moore.听 鈥淎dding an extra 4 minutes to the MBS Item for short consultations will encourage more considered and quality time to be shared between patient and doctor.听 It encourages doctors to spend more time with patients needing a comprehensive service - an increasing issue when treating patients with complex and or chronic health conditions鈥�.
鈥淎ctions on health should neither penalise our doctors nor undermine our world standard universal health care system鈥�, concluded Professor Yeatman.
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