Will any services will be bulk billed?

Yes, the following visits are examples of services that will be bulk billed. Provided that the patient is eligible under medicare.

• Chronic Disease Management Plans
• Flu vaccination clinics
• Routine Childhood Vaccinations
• Health assessments
• Wound management

Why these?

Medicare offers a higher subsidy for some of these items ie. management plans or health assessments. Which in turn allows us to continue to offer bulk billing for these particular services.

When considering flu vaccination clinics, childhood vaccinations and wound reviews we would like to be sure the community has access to these services. As a result we will continue to offer these appointments with out a gap fee.

Exceptions might include vaccinations that are not covered by the schedule. Or expensive dressings that would not otherwise be available.

What is a GP Management Plan?

A GP management plan or care plan is a document put together by your doctor with your involvement that agrees on goals for your care over the future 12 months. It can include other medical professionals that are involved in your care over that time.

One of the benefits of a care plan is that once completed it allows you to access certain allied health professionals (up to 5 times a year) at a reduced fee. ie. physiotherapy, speech therapy, podiatry.

The criteria to meet a care plan is quite detailed but in short is at least 2 conditions which are chronic or are likely to impact your health for more than 6 months.

Examples might be back pain, osteoarthritis, diabetes, thyroid problems, glaucoma, endometriosis.

How will it help you?

A GP care plan can be reviewed up to once every 3 months. This means up to 4 times a year you may be able to be bulk billed. Again, this is subject to meeting the criteria. If we do not meet the criteria we could be asked to repay medicare the subsidy obtained. As a result doctors are careful to ensure the plan is completed correctly.

What is a Health Assessment?

A health assessment is a very thorough assessment that is provided by your nurse and GP. It involves collection of a thorough history, physical examination and the formulation of a plan to manage any problems identified.

Again there are eligibility criteria. These include

• age >75years (once per year)
• 40-49 year olds at high risk of diabetes (every 3 years)
• 45-49 year olds at risk of developing chronic disease (once only)
• People with intellectual disability (once per year)
• Indigenous Health Assessment (once every 9 months)

These assessments are a great opportunity for us to identify problems that might not otherwise be addressed. Examples might be screening spirometry for smokers lung disease or bowel screening testing to look for bowel cancer. It could also involve referrals to the community nurses or aged care teams.

These appointments take alot of co-ordination and are often booked for at least 40 minutes with the nurse and then closed off with the doctor following her initial assessment. If you’re interested in doing one of these health assessments please let your doctor know.