Pharmacy Daily | GP co-pay plan revealed

THE Australian Medical Association (AMA) has released its proposed plan for a GP copayment. The government had previously agreed to consider an alternative to the proposed $7 GP co-payment (PD 24 Jul) which AMA president Associate Professor Brian Owler released to the public yesterday, saying it was a health, not economic, model. It proposes a minimum $6.15 copayment, which Government would pay for concession card holders and patients under 16 years old. This figure aligned with the current bulk billing incentive, the AMA said, ensuring a GP received no more for seeing a general patient than for seeing a concessional patient. There would be no cuts to Medicare rebates, such as the Government’s proposal to reduce these by $5. There is no provision for the Medical Research Fund, where the government had said the Medicare rebate cuts would go, meaning the co-payment would go to GPs. The model also proposes that all co-payments be included in determining whether the Medicare safety net had been reached. Co-payments would not apply to residential aged care visits, home visits and chronic disease management services among others. The AMA said it was open to a co-payment for pathology and diagnostic imaging, but that the measure be deferred for two years as there were practical issues to be resolved in terms of collection and impact on viability of practices. Minister for Health Peter Dutton said the proposal would result in a “windfall for doctors”, removing 97% of the government’s planned savings, the Australian reported. Dutton said the proposal would take government savings from a planned $3.5b over five years to about $100m, the publication reported. CLICK HERE to read more.

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