Letter: Government Freeze on Medicare

Over two years ago, the Federal Government froze the Medicare rebate. For bulk billed visits, that means there has been no fee increase in that time.

Unfortunately, the costs of running a business have not been fixed and have increased.

The decision by the Federal Government to extend the Rebate Freeze for a further five years will have severe consequences for all GP’s.

It would force many to close, or at the very least reduce staff, and cut consultation time down to 5-10 minutes maximum.

The quality of care available would drop significantly.

We would hate to see that happen.

At Scone Medical Practice, all doctors, nurses and staff take great pride in providing the best possible care to our patients.

We value the long term relationships that we have developed with many of our patients over the years.

We want to continue that high quality service to our patients.

It is important that we make changes to our billing policy to remain sustainable.

The Rebate Freeze is effectively a GP Co-Payment by stealth.

Even if Labor were to win the election, there is no guarantee that rebates would rise sufficiently to address the problems that we now face.

The Future of Traditional General Practice is at stake.

Your health care is our reason for being here.

To do the job properly we need to raise our fees and reduce bulk billing.

Very soon we will provide you all with details of how the changes will affect you individually.

This first report is to advise you of upcoming changes and how this may affect you.

Sincerely,

Ross Higham
Scone Medical Practice