Bulk billing doctors and GPs in SA, rising fees and costs

Herald Sun

4 days ago

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South Australians are being left up to $74 out of pocket to visit their GP, contradicting claims by Anthony Albanese that people would only need a Medicare card – not a credit card – to visit the doctor.
It comes as the Australian Medical Association SA says the state should follow Queensland's lead and abolish payroll tax on GPs.
A check of many Adelaide GP clinics by The Advertiser revealed a Medicare card can only get you so far, with nearly all metropolitan clinics only offering limited bulk-billing services to select groups of the community, such as veterans or children.
Most are charging patients an out-of-pocket expense of $49 for a standard consultation, with prices broadly tied to suburbs.
North Haven and Port Adelaide offered one of the cheapest gap fees at $35, while Glenelg had one of the highest at $68.
Unley and its surrounding suburbs also had high gap fees, ranging from $61 and $74.
Some centres had low gap fees such as $30 but then charged patients 'admin fees' between $5 and $10, while others had card payment surcharges on top of the fees.
AMA SA president Peter Subramaniam said SA's payroll tax on GPs means patients here are paying more than those interstate.
'The payroll tax on GPs was abolished with bipartisan support in Queensland last year, because both major parties recognised it was costing patients more and costing the system more,' Associate Professor Subramaniam said.
'This isn't just a tax on doctors – it's a tax on access to healthcare. When patients can't afford to see their GP, they get sicker,' he said.
'That puts pressure on overcrowded emergency departments, adding to the stress and costs on the system.'
According to the AMA, the cost of seeing a GP in South Australia has increased by roughly $10 per visit as a direct result of the payroll tax – a cost Queenslanders are now not paying.
Prof Subramaniam's comments come as new figures show Australians paid more than $151m in June to visit their GP, highlighting the mountain the Prime Minister has to climb to fulfil his pledge.
Following a week in which Mr Albanese stood in parliament and repeated his election campaign shtick of waving around his Medicare card, new data from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare showed Australians have also paid more than $2.2bn out-of-pocket to see a doctor in the past year.
Labor's election pledge to ramp up bulk-billing with an $8.5bn investment, which it says will enable an extra 18 million bulk-billed visits a year, is yet to start, with figures showing Australians continue to take a hit to the hip pocket.
'Anthony Albanese promised Australians that 'All you need is your Medicare card, not a credit card' and that it would be 'free to see a GP',' Opposition health spokeswoman Anne Ruston said.
'While he was waving around his Medicare card and misleading the public, Australians were forking out billions of dollars in out-of-pocket costs – presumably charged to their credit cards.'
Health Minister Mark Butler said increased bulk-billing would begin in November.
'We know too many Australians are paying too much out of pocket when they go to the doctor because of the Liberals' cuts to Medicare,' he said.
'On November 1, we will expand bulk-billing incentives to all Australians and create an incentive payment for practices that bulk-bill every patient.'
Mr Butler said the move would result in nine out of 10 GP visits being bulk-billed by 2030.
Originally published as Rising GP fees leave SA patients out of pocket despite Anthony Albanese's Medicare claims Read related topics: Anthony Albanese