Government warned GPs have ‘reached their limit’ with Medicare

Australia remains in the clutches of a cost-of-living crisis. But even though a national report into the matter has been again delayed – this time by a year – the RACGP has warned essential affordable healthcare measures must still be included in next month’s Federal Budget.
 
Speaking in the wake of a college submission to the Senate Select Committee on the Cost of Living, RACGP President Dr Nicole Higgins said healthcare costs are creating inequality and leaving Australians without the care they need.
 
‘GPs are increasingly worried about their patients’ financial issues and the affordability of essential care,’ she said.
 
‘Last year’s Budget … was just the first step to rebuild Medicare after decades of underfunding – there is a long way to go to ensure every Australian can get the care they need.
 
‘We suffered 10 years of underfunding including the Medicare freeze, and now this latest bout of rapid inflation.
 
‘This is why Australian patients have seen out-of-pocket costs increase and healthcare become increasingly unaffordable; many GPs have had no choice but to increase fees to cover the practice costs and keep the doors open.’
 
The committee’s report was originally due to be published on 30 November 2023 but has been delayed twice. The latest extension was granted on 26 March, and will now see the report finalised by 15 November – several months past this year’s May Federal Budget.
 
Nonetheless, the RACGP has repeated its calls to improve access to affordable care, after a Productivity Commission Report revealed 7% of people delayed or skipped GP visits due to costs in 2022–23, while nearly a quarter did not see a mental health professional because they could not afford it.
 
Co-founder of RACGP Specific Interests Poverty and Health, Dr Tim Senior, told newsGP last year’s Budget incentives aided practices already bulk billing pensioners, concession card holders and children, but pointed out they did not apply to other areas, such as mental health.
 
‘One of the things we know is that those who can’t afford healthcare have more problems with mental health and chronic diseases,’ he said.
 
‘So precisely where it is needed most, general practice is under the biggest squeeze.’
 
Dr Senior said the Government needs to stop seeing general practice as an expense and instead see it as an investment.
 
‘It’s really hard to see what the Government is prioritising,’ he said.
 
‘They’re feeling the pressure on the cost of living, so things are directed towards that, but it’s not clear that they are seeing health as part of the solution and that actually keeping people well keeps people in work and able to look after their families.
 
‘You get a lot of bang for your buck by supporting primary care.’
 
And while general practices have long subsidised care for vulnerable patients, Dr Senior said the situation is becoming untenable.
 
‘GPs have been doing a lot to help over the last decade or so, but they’ve reached their limit now,’ he said.
 
‘GPs really feel the difficulty their patients are having and have bent over backwards, but GPs are also feeling the same cost increases.’
 
The Treasury Department was contacted by newsGP and asked if the RACGP’s calls for a 20% increase in Medicare rebates for longer consultations and extra support for rural patients, as well as a 20% increase in patient rebates for GP mental health consultations, would be considered in the Budget.
 
In response, a spokesperson said ‘the Budget will be released on 14 May’.
 
Chair of the Cost of Living Committee, Liberal Senator Jane Hume said ‘in light of the continuing nature of the cost-of-living crisis’ she had moved to extend the Committee’s deadline to deliver its final report.
 
‘This was supported unanimously by the Senate,’ she told newsGP.
 
‘The cost-of-living crisis is impacting a suite of areas including business insolvencies, household pressures, greater charitable demand, educational outcomes and of course health outcomes too.
 
‘It is deeply concerning that recent reports show … more than 1.2 million Australians were forced to delay important primary healthcare because of the cost-of-living crisis.
 
‘The number one thing … to ease the cost of living for Australians so they can prioritise their health is to get inflation under control.’
 
Senator Hume said the Committee is ‘considering all the evidence before it’ and will deliver its next interim report in the coming weeks.
 
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