MORE than half of patients in the state’s north are faced with out-of-pocket expenses for services covered by Medicare.
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Murray Primary Health Network acting chief executive officer Anne Somerville said the proportion of patients in the almost 100,000 square kilometre region making contributions to cover the cost of GP, specialist, obstetric and medical imaging services was higher than the national average.
“These costs are compounded by additional travel expenses and limited access for many communities to the same range of services expected in cities,” Ms Somerville said.
In the Murray region, 57 per cent of patients had out-of-pocket costs for non-hospital Medicare services in 2016-17, compared with 49.8 per cent nationally.
“Most GPs are very sensitive to passing on the costs to patients but are unable to continue to absorb rising costs in a fixed fee environment,” Ms Somerville said.
“This is particularly problematic in smaller practices with lower patient numbers, where the impact of fixed rebates is greater than in more populous areas.
“Murray PHN is developing strategies for general practices in our region to support their business needs, allowing them to focus on delivering quality care to their patients.”
Bendigo Primary Care Centre chief executive Glen Careedy said about 60 per cent of the clinic’s patients were bulk-billed.
“We’ve been about that mark for about five years,” he said.
Rebates for GPs and other medical specialists were frozen at 2014 rates for most of those five years.
“We’re a not-for-profit, so if we make a bit of surplus we reinvest [in the centre],” Mr Careedy said.
But, even then, he said Bendigo Primary Care Centre was feeling the strain of the freeze.
“Without any change – one of those changes being a further reduction in GP remuneration – we wouldn’t be able to continue through past 2020,” he said.
“There are clinics out there that do not make money, today.”
About 41 per cent of Murray GP patients pay out-of-pocket costs, compared with 33.8 per cent nationally.
The average out-of-pocket cost per GP attendance in the region is $17, while nationally it’s $20.
More than half of Murray obstetric patients – 52.3 per cent – are paying out-of-pocket costs, as are 72 per cent of specialist patients.
The proportion of patients paying for medical imaging is about the national average, at 23 per cent.
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