General Practice Gets Shaved
The Australian Medical Association today accused the Federal Government of taking a razor to a number of GP programs to help fund its GP Super Clinic election promise in this week's Budget.
AMA President, Dr Rosanna Capolingua, questioned the wisdom of these cutbacks - claiming General Practice net spending cuts were estimated at around $170 milllion.
"Funding has been shaved across the board and re-directed to 31 GP Super Clinic projects. The previous funding was available across all General Practices, intended to invest in all General Practices across the country. The GP Super Clinics are just specific," she said.
"The AMA maintains that this money will need to be well targeted at areas of need and must add to - rather than replace - local health infrastructure if it is to be effective."
"These cuts to General Practice seem contrary to the Government's stated focus on strengthening primary care.
"The Rudd Government has cut highly-successful incentives for immunisation (paid through the Service Incentive Program) and rationalised grants for after-hours service so that funding will no longer be available to establish new facilities. Funding to support E-health has also been cut."
Dr Capolingua said the Government also cut funding for the pre-vocational GP training program that was designed to give young doctors a taste of General Practice and encourage them to consider it as a long-term career option. This program also supplemented the GP work force.
"While the program did struggle to meet recruitment targets early on, the number of doctors participating had been growing and the program was expected to reach its full potential.
"Fewer than 30 per cent of Australian graduates choose GP training for a career. If we want to lift this number, cutting programs for pre-vocational training doesn't help."
Dr Capolingua said that, if the Government wanted to deliver better primary health care services, it needed to ramp up the number of GP training places.
According to the Australian Medical Workforce Advisory Committee, Australia needed around 1,000 new GPs per annum, yet only 600 training places were set aside each year.
"Most importantly, this Budget failed to increase the indexation of the Medicare rebate for patients to keep pace with the cost of providing care. This places upward pressure on patient out-of-pocket expenses."
The AMA did, however, welcome the funding provision for limited GP MRI referral but said the measure still needed Ministerial approval.
"Minister Roxon put GP MRI referral on hold six months ago pending a review. Nothing has happened since," Dr Capolingua said.
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