Veterans losing access to promised level of quality health care - AMA Poll

An AMA survey of 335 doctors who participate in the LMO Scheme indicates that 60 per cent of GPs are on the verge of withdrawing from the Scheme if the Government fails to increase funding.

Managed by the Department of Veterans' Affairs (DVA), the LMO Scheme provides veterans with free medical care and treatment.  Participating GPs bulk bill the DVA the cost of providing the high quality service, but Medicare Plus incentives for bulk billing have eroded the value of an LMO consultation.

AMA President, Dr Bill Glasson, said today that the LMO Scheme promises veterans the same level of access and standards of health care as a private patient, but the Government is failing to provide the funding to deliver on their stated commitment to the care of our war veterans.

"Our veterans are getting older and their health needs are becoming more complex, but the LMO fee does not reflect the fact that that our veterans have serious and sometimes multiple ailments that require special care and much longer GP consultations," Dr Glasson said.

"There are currently 298,607 veterans eligible for care under DVA programs - with more than 150,000 of these veterans aged 70 and over.

"These veterans made the ultimate sacrifice for their country and their fellow Australians, but are now being short-changed on the level of health care promised them in their retirement years because their Gold Cards no longer offer them the benefits to which they are entitled.

"The Government must do the right thing by our veterans and fund the LMO Scheme appropriately.  If not, GPs will reluctantly opt out of the Scheme and ready access to promised high quality medical services and care will be denied our veterans," Dr Glasson said.

Of the GPs polled, 86 per cent said veterans have more complex treatment needs than other patients, while 81 per cent said their DVA patients required considerably more paperwork and red tape, cutting into available time for other patients.

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare report, Australia's Health 2004, states:

"...49 per cent of veterans with a DVA health care entitlement card rated their health as either fair or poor, compared with about 33 per cent of males of equivalent age in the general community...veterans report poorer health and more health problems than people of the same age in the general community, and war widows and widowers."