Your Family Doctor – Keeping You Healthy
AMA FAMILY DOCTOR WEEK, 20-26 July 2014
AMA President, A/Prof Brian Owler, said today that the GP co-payment model that the Government released in the May Budget would deter patients from seeing their family doctor.
A/Prof Owler said putting barriers between sick people and much-needed care and advice would only lead to much sicker patients and higher costs to the health system.
“The AMA cannot support the Government’s current co-payment proposals for general practice, pathology, and radiology – and I have said that in person to the Prime Minister, the Treasurer, and the Health Minister,” A/Prof Owler said.
“The Government has listened to our concerns and has agreed to consider an alternative and fairer approach, which the AMA is currently developing.
“It simply does not make sense to make it harder for people with an illness or an ailment to seek help from their family doctor.
“Overseas evidence shows that better health outcomes are delivered when barriers to primary care are low.
“Our frontline family doctors are very efficient and are a low cost part of the Australian health system.
“We must encourage patients to see their family doctor, which can reduce pressure on the hospital sector and help avoid the need for more expensive medical interventions.
“The Government’s model has the potential to hit vulnerable patients – those with chronic disease – as well as discourage important preventative health activities.
“Family doctors keep people well.
“If people are put off seeing their family doctor, their conditions could worsen, placing greater pressure on already overstretched public hospitals.
“The highly-respected Byte from the Beach report, from the University of Sydney, recently looked at the impact of the Government’s proposed model and showed that older Australians, who generally need more medical care, will be hardest hit by co-payments.
“We have seen some acknowledgement from the Government that it is willing to look at aspects of its co-payment model, starting with the impact on people in aged care.
“The AMA recognises that it is reasonable for people with appropriate means to make a contribution towards the costs of seeing a doctor, but we cannot support policies that disadvantage the poor, the elderly, the chronically ill, and Indigenous Australians in particular.
“We hope to be able to present the Government with a fair and workable alternative policy in a matter of weeks,” A/Prof Owler said.
The AMA has produced videos to promote Family Doctor Week 2014:
This video (mute) has been produced so that general practices can play it in their waiting rooms for the information of their patients:
All the videos can be downloaded from the AMA Family Doctor Week website at https://ama.com.au/familydoctorweek2014
AMA Family Doctor Week is sponsored by Australian General Practice Training.