Image: Photo: Pexels / Karolina Grabowska
The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP), the peak organisation representing general practitioners in Australia, says that Australians under the age of 35 should have their GP appointments bulk-billed.
In its plan for improved GP accessibility and affordability launched at Parliament House on Tuesday 11 February, the professional body emphasised the need to counter cost-of-living pressures. “The cost-of-living crisis is impacting the health of young Australians,” it says.
“Research shows young people are the most likely cohort to delay seeing a GP because they can’t afford it. When young people delay healthcare, serious health conditions can go undetected which means that when they do require healthcare it is often more complex and expensive.”
“This is why we are calling for the bulk billing incentive to be extended to all people aged 34 years and under to ensure they can get the preventive care and treatments to keep them healthy and out of hospital.”
The plan forecasts this to require an annual investment of between $390.6 million and $557.8 million, depending on demand. For this, the RACGP expects the proposal would create 2.2 million additional GP appointments and save young Australians $27.8 million annually. It also expects it to prevent 3,182 emergency room presentations and 9,194 hospitalisations annually, saving $48.9 million per year.
By promoting improved preventative care, early diagnosis and chronic disease management, the body expects the proposal to save $42.3 million in “health costs” per year.
The college also proposes other increases in healthcare subsidisation, including increasing the rebate for appointments related to chronic diseases by 40 percent, expecting this to save Australians a collective $268 million annually.
“Almost two thirds of Australians (61%) live with at least one chronic disease such as diabetes, heart disease or depression and need to see their specialist GP more frequently about more complex health issues, but Medicare funding for these appointments is lower per minute than it is for shorter consultations,” it says.
“This makes longer health appointments that are essential for people with complex health problems too expensive for many people.”
“The next Australian Government must make longer consultations more affordable to ensure people get the specialist GP healthcare they need to manage these health conditions and stay healthy and out of hospital.”
The RACGP plan targets political parties contesting this year’s election
The RACGP plan is targeted at political parties contesting this year’s general election, with the organisation “urging all political parties to support its plan to ensure access to affordable GP care for everyone in Australia.”
“The plan will halve out-of-pocket costs, deliver 6.2 million more bulk billed consults each year, and get more specialist GPs training in communities,” it said in a press release.
RACGP President Michael Wright said that Australians “need urgent cost-of-living relief, including for essential healthcare.”
“Despite Australia’s world class health system, many people are missing out on essential care. Medicare has been underfunded for decades, including a 10-year funding freeze, so patients are paying more out-of-pocket and it’s harder for specialist GPs to bulk bill.”
“At the same time, while GP numbers are increasing, they aren’t keeping pace with the need for care across Australia. Our population is growing and ageing, and there’s an epidemic of chronic illnesses. Compounding the issue, our GP workforce is ageing, with a third of doctors planning to retire in the next five years.”
“We’re calling on all parties to support our plan and the 19 initiatives within it.”
Wright said that if the plan is implemented, “it will immediately improve access to affordable GP care and ease cost-of-living pressures.”
“Long term, it will improve health and wellbeing and reduce the number of people who end up in hospital with preventable illnesses, saving the health system nearly half a billion every year.”
Bulk-billing has become a key issue for the upcoming election, with the Coalition pointing to declining bulk-billing rates in the past few years and its own investment plans while the Labor government has pointed to investments already made while pledging to do more.
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