Premature X-rays for back pain, unnecessary referrals to allied health professionals and regional spikes in cardiac procedures are areas likely to be reviewed in the Abbott government’s search for Medicare savings.
Yet the former political adviser who claims credit for the ill-fated co-payment policy, Terry Barnes, has accused Health Minister Sussan Ley of giving up on “big-bang Medicare structural reform” and ceding control to the Australian Medical Association.
“After last year’s misadventures over GP co-payments and other mishandled measures, the government clearly has decided to play it safe and not rock medical profession and Senate boats,” he writes in The Australian today.
Ms Ley announced an evidence-based review of Medicare Benefits Schedule items by a new taskforce, tougher compliance measures to ensure clinicians follow best practice, and a primary health advisory group to consult on system and structural reforms.
The move was cautiously welcomed by the AMA and other health groups yesterday, as Ms Ley repeated her offer to consider lifting the freeze on Medicare rebates if sufficient savings were identified in coming months.
“What we’re talking about is making that structure better reflect contemporary medical practice and … better care for patients.”
She said the reviews would be patient-focused and clinician-led, and did not have savings targets in mind.
While routine MBS reviews have been undertaken and broader reforms recommended in the past, she insisted the policy shift was significant.
Areas likely to come under scrutiny include X-rays and CT scans of the lower back, which in 2013-14 cost Medicare $128 million. A University of Sydney study found 30 per cent of those GP referrals were “inconsistent with the established guidelines”.
Mr Barnes describes potential savings as mere “tweaks” and notes Ms Ley is no longer promoting price signals in health, means-testing bulk-billing or a permanent rebate freeze.
Source: The Australian