60% of GPs Plan to Reduce Bulk Billing: New Survey

The survey, conducted last week, also shows:

• 79% oppose a move away from fee-for-service medicine towards blended payments
• 55% are worse off than they were two years ago
• 88.5% said the Federal Government did not value their role as a GP
• 94% said the General Practice Memorandum of Understanding made no difference, or adversely affected their job satisfaction.

AMA Federal President, Dr Kerryn Phelps, said the survey was a wake up call for politicians. "GPs will no longer be the soft target for government," she said.

"There is a Federal election on the horizon and we want to know what the major parties plan to improve the working life of Australia's 22,000 GPs and the service they can provide to their patients.

"General practice is the backbone of our health system. It takes 10 years of training to become an independently practising GP. But pathetically low Medicare patient rebates mean patients have to subsidise a visit to a GP more, or bulk-billing doctors are forced to see more and more patients in order to meet escalating practice costs.

"Successive Federal Government's have treated general practice with contempt by winding back the real value of the Medicare 'schedule fee' for general practice services.

"The survey also shows that the so-called 'Memorandum of Understanding' signed last year by some GP groups and the Federal Government has done little to lift moral or improve the financial viability of general practice.

"There is also a push for GPs to receive more of their income through government grants, a move opposed by most GPs. GPs do not want to become de facto government bureaucrats. They are there to serve the needs of their patients - not the bureaucracy.

"Joint Commonwealth/AMA studies have found that a fair fee for a standard consultation up to 20 minutes should be around $44 - not the $22.50 that a bulk-billing doctor now accepts on behalf of the patient.

"As the AMA has been saying for some time, the Government can't have it both ways.

"Either it adjusts the Medicare 'schedule fee' to reflect the cost of providing a medical service. Or it comes clean and tells the community that 'schedule fee' is only a partial subsidy for the costs of a GP consultation.

"The Government has three options. One - do nothing and watch bulk-billing wither on the vine. Two - adjust the 'schedule fee' to reflect reality. Or three - increase rebates for the genuinely needy.

"Government policy is crippling general practice. Morale has hit rock bottom. It's time for GPs and the community to speak out.

"The AMA will be highlighting the crisis facing GPs and their patients during Family Doctor Week and will be looking to politicians to explain their vision for the future," Dr Phelps said.

The survey was conducted by fax poll between July 11 and 13. GPs were selected at random throughout Australia. Total 1,086 surveys sent - 548 completed surveys returned - response rate of 50.46%.

Compared to two years ago, are you financially better off, worse off, about the same?

Better off 12.9%

Worse off 54.8%

About the same 32.3%

There is a view within government that the proportion of direct practice payments to fee-for-service payments should be around 50% for blended payments and 50% for fee for service. Do you strongly oppose, simply oppose, have no view, support, a change in the balance away from fee-for-service?

Strongly oppose 54.3%

Simply oppose 25.1%

(Total oppose 79.4%)

Have no view 13.7%

Support 6.9%

Do you believe the Federal Government values your role as a GP?

Yes 11.5%

No 88.5%

How has the impact of the General Practice Memorandum of Understanding affected your job satisfaction? Positively, negatively, no difference?

Positively 6.4%

No difference 76.4%

Negatively 17.2%

Do you currently bulk-bill no patients, some patients, all patients?

No patients 4.9%

Some patients 70.4%

All patients 24.6%

Given the current government policy towards general practice, are you considering bulk-billing fewer patients, maintaining current practice, bulk-billing more patients?

Fewer patients 58.8%

Maintaining current practice 40.8%

Bulk-billing more 0.4%