Fairer Medicare Package not the answer

Dr Haikerwal said the Australian Institute for Primary Care's analysis released today, has reached the same conclusion.

"The report stated very clearly that the Package would fail to make primary health care more accessible or affordable for Australians," Dr Haikerwal said.

"While the AMA agrees that the Government's Medicare Package is not feasible, it disagrees with many of the report's assumptions and believes the analysis ignores a number of vital issues.

"The basis of the report's modelling is severely flawed because it simply assumes that GP's want to earn more.

"That is not what is happening here.

"Practice costs are rising significantly - our modelling suggests 10% this year - and GPs must cover these rising costs.

"Many GPs are finding that the current MBS schedule does not reflect the true cost of providing services. Patients will be forced to pay increasing gaps.

"Practice costs in this report have been calculated simply by updating old figures using CPI.

"This doesn't take into account increases in wages, which have outstripped CPI, and medical inflation, including costs such as insurance.

"Medical indemnity costs for GPs have risen by 40% in the last year, alone.

"The failure to get this base data correct means the report's findings on GP incomes and potential incomes is flawed.

"In addition, the report ignores the crucial workforce crisis. Economic modelling can be undertaken until the cows come home, but is worthless if communities don't have a GP to look after them.

"Any plan to fix general practice must include solutions to the current GP shortage.

"This report does nothing to help the Senate Committee understand the impact of the workforce dynamic on GP charging patterns or the difficulty experienced by the public in accessing medical care.

CONTACT:     Judith Tokley    (02) 6270 5471 / 0408 824 306