ACCC should recognise rural health problems
AMA President, Dr Kerryn Phelps, said today the ACCC should focus on the problems facing patients and doctors in rural Australia rather than continue to avoid the issue by trying to demonise the AMA.
Dr Phelps was responding to claims today by ACCC Chair, Allan Fels, that the AMA was providing incorrect information to the medical community about the Trade Practices Act 1974.
"In July 1998, the ACCC itself admitted that the Trade Practices Act (TPA) hinders rural doctors," Dr Phelps said.
"In its determination rejecting the AMA's application for authorisation for rural doctors to jointly negotiate with rural hospitals in South Australia, the ACCC said:
- '…The Commission accepts that the arrangements assist the South Australian Health Commission recruit scarce medical resources in rural areas and has already acknowledged that the availability of such resources is a public benefit. However, the Commission is not convinced that other less anti-competitive arrangements would not also achieve those benefits…'.
"Since that determination, neither the Commission nor anyone else has come up with other arrangements and the benefits of better medical resources have been lost to rural South Australia.
"Mr Fels' defence of the ACCC's draconian approach to rural health issues is specious and relies on obfuscation, red herrings and misinformation.
"For the record, the AMA has never sought blanket exemption from the TPA.
"The AMA's position is simple: country doctors must be allowed to work cooperatively through rosters, work sharing, and discussions with local hospitals to deliver quality around-the-clock health services to their patients.
"Mr Fels argues, for example, that these doctors must not discuss the fees that they will charge when taking care of each other's patients after hours, and they must not discuss who will handle certain types of ailments or illnesses.
"By doing this, Mr Fels is effectively arguing that doctors' rosters should be outlawed.
"We currently have a situation where doctors face potential $500,000 fines for breaching complex legislation that was designed to control large corporations.
"This is farcical and defies common sense.
"It is not surprising, then, that doctors are very concerned about entering into cooperative arrangements that would benefit their patients and their communities.
"Rural doctors should not have to get an individual ACCC authorisation to practise medicine in rural and regional Australia.
"Country towns and communities are doing it tough enough with services that other Australians take for granted disappearing on a regular basis these days.
"The last thing they need is the ACCC needlessly hindering the work of their family doctors or threatening the viability of their practices."
Dr Phelps said the AMA is operating on detailed and comprehensive legal advice in all its dealings relating to the ACCC and the Trade Practices Act 1974.
CONTACT: John Flannery (02) 6270 5477 / (0419) 494 761
Sarah Crichton (02) 6270 5472 / (0419) 440 076