GP Practice to Refund Fees for its $250 Vaccine Consults
Blessed Health Care, a GP practice in the heart of a Sydney COVID-19 hotspot, has been reprimanded for charging hundreds for Pfizer vaccinations.
The general practice had originally put up signs at its two practices, stating all new patients would have to pay $250 for an initial consult prior to receiving the COVID-19 vaccination.
The practice argued the large fee was reasonable, as it did not bulk-bill new patients, and it could not administer the vaccine to a new patient without first analysing the patient’s medical history.
Australian Government Minister for Health Greg Hunt said charging for the vaccine was ‘plain bad behaviour’ and assured the public the clinic would be penalised for its actions.
Minister Hunt also reiterated, “The vaccine is free. The consultations for the vaccine are paid to be bulk-billed.”
The Federal Department of Health said the National COVID-19 Vaccine Taskforce would correspond with any patients impacted to make sure they were compensated.
However, Local Councillor Kun Huangsaid the practice was preparing to refund patients charged these exorbitant fees.
When this news story surfaced, one of the GPs at the practice said he was attending to marginalised patients that did not speak English.
According to the GP, Chinese-speaking construction workers had been ‘crying out for help’, as they felt as though they needed to be vaccinated for their jobs, but were struggling to book online due to the language barrier.
Further, the GP said the practice had been bombarded with ‘hundreds and hundreds’ of patients trying to book in for vaccinations as the word had spread throughout the community.
The Australian Government Department of Health continues to stress that COVID-19 vaccinations should be free for everyone, requiring GPs to bulk-bill all the COVID-19 vaccination MBS items.
In circumstances where a patient is not eligible for Medicare, the government has directed general practices to refer these patients to a State or Commonwealth vaccination clinic.
If you have any further questions or concerns regarding the operational requirements concerning the COVID-19 vaccine rollout, please reach out to our Workplace Relations Team on (07) 3872 2222 or at workplacerelations@amaq.com.au.