Medibank put on notice to fix flawed Defence contracts
The AMA has pressed home doctor concerns about flawed Defence health care provider agreements during a meeting with senior Medibank Private officials today.
With the crisis engulfing the shift of Australian Defence Force health care services to private provider Medibank Health Solutions showing no signs of abating, the AMA has urged the organisation to re-think its strategy and re-write the provider contracts being offered to private specialists.
MHS has encountered stiff resistance to its plans among practitioners, including in the Northern Territory.
None of the Darwin-based specialists so far surveyed by the AMA have signed a MHS contract, and the Association has been inundated with complaints from members nationwide concerned about provisions in the MHS agreements that potentially compromise patient confidentiality and choice of practitioner, as well as slashing fees by up to 50 per cent.
The row erupted after MHS won a four-year contract worth $1.3 billion to provide health care services to 80,000 Defence personnel.
MHS has demanded that practitioners who want to be included in a list of preferred providers to accept the terms of their offer.
But the organisation has faced a massive backlash from doctors, who have refused en mass to sign the agreements, forcing the military to delay the introduction of the MHS arrangements by at least six weeks.
The AMA expects to hold further talks with Medibank Private next week.
AR