Healthy Skepticism Library item: 774

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Publication type: news

Hudson P.
What's in it for me?
The Hearld Sun 2004 Dec 26

Full text:

Prescription medicines will cost more and doctors will be paid extra to see patients after hours from January 1, but it is unclear whether the out-of-pocket cost of a trip to the GP will rise or fall.

The new year will mean babies and the elderly can be immunised free of charge against the deadly pneumococcal disease.

DOCTORS

One of the Government’s key election promises on health was to reduce the out-of-pocket cost of a standard 15-minute GP consultation by $4.50 for people who do not use a bulk-billing doctor. It will do this by increasing the Medicare rebate it pays doctors from $25.70 to $30.20 and it will be paid whether a doctor bulk bills or not. But patients may not see any benefit if GPs increase their prices, as some are tipped to do.

The Medicare safety net, which cuts the cost of out-of-hospital doctors such as GPs and specialists once your out-of-pocket cost reaches a set amount, will be reset on January 1. People who have qualified have just a few more days to benefit. Under the scheme, pensioners and those receiving the family tax benefit get 80 per cent of the gap back once they reach the threshold of $300 each calendar year. For everyone else it is $700.

The new “round the clock Medicare” package worth $393 million also begins with the Government paying doctors an extra $10 on top of other incentives for after-hours and weekend GP services. The Government predicts there will be 1 million after-hours GP consultations in 2005.

Practice nurses will be able to provide cervical screening procedures from January 1. The Government predicts up to 200,000 Pap smear screenings per year will be covered by the new arrangement.

MEDICINES

The cost of taxpayer-subsidised medicines from the chemist will rise by $4.90 to a maximum $28.60 per script while the charge for pensioners and health care card holders rises by 80 cents to $4.60.

The Government said the medicines cost far more than people paid for them and the rise in the co-payment was needed to keep the pharmaceutical benefits scheme sustainable as it now cost the budget $5.6 billion compared with $1 billion in 1990.

IMMUNISATION

The free pneumococcal vaccine will be available to newborns at two, four and six months of age. Children aged under two (born since January 1, 2003) will be given a “catch-up” vaccination. The chief medical officer, John Horvath, said the number of doses required for the catch-up shots will vary and depends on the age at which the first dose is given. The vaccine will also be free for people aged over 65.