ESSA rebukes freeze on Medicare rebates

December 16, 2014

Industry body Exercise & Sports Science Australia (ESSA) has spoken out against the federal government’s recently announced freeze on Medicare rebates, which will see Medicare fees for all services provided by general practitioners, medical specialists and allied health practitioners remain at current levels until July 2018.

ESSA Executive Officer Anita Hobson-Powell said the government had failed to account for the yearly rise in consumer price index (CPI) when announcing the freeze, and this would have a detrimental effect on the patients and carers that Medicare aimed to protect with its free or subsidised treatment and health care service initiatives.

“While the service fee freeze is an effort from the government to curb rising Medicare costs, the reality is that either health service providers or consumers will ultimately be the ones left out of pocket,” Ms Hobson-Powell said.

“Increasing CPI elevates the costs imposed on allied health and medical businesses and practitioners, and without a corresponding increase in payment for services, it is likely that these health providers will need to pass these costs onto consumers.”

“In many cases, increased service costs will be unavoidable to ensure that medical and allied health businesses remain viable and can continue to provide much needed health services to the Australian community.”

Ms Hobson-Powell said any increase to patient health care costs had the potential to negatively impact access to affordable healthcare — particularly for low income earners — and those practitioners who were providing a bulk bill service would now likely need to change a gap fee.

“It is well-documented that people with a lower socio-economic status are at increased risk of a number of conditions, including chronic disease,” Ms Hobson-Powell said.

“Considering chronic diseases account for approximately 70 per cent of all health expenditure in Australia*, it is crucial that these patients are able to access treatment and are not deterred by rising health costs.”

Ms Hobson-Powell said that if costs were not kept in check, more patients would fail to receive much needed health care and many high-risk patients would fail to seek medical assistance until their health had deteriorated to a point where they could no longer forgo treatment.

“The government’s revised plan is essentially just shifting the burden from Medicare to the already strained hospital sector,” Ms Hobson-Powell said.

“Over the long term, we are likely to see an increase in seriously ill patients being admitted to hospital, as many low-income earners will prolong seeking treatment for as long as possible for financial reasons.”

“It is much more cost-effective to prevent disease or reduce its effects early on than it is to treat advanced conditions, so the government should be making efforts now to ensure healthcare is affordable for all Australians and reduce preventable hospital admissions in the future.”

For more information about ESSA please visit www.essa.org.au.

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For further media information, please contact Kristen from Fresh PR & Marketing on 0406 546 461 or email kristen@freshprm.com.au.

Source
*2013, Pharmaceutical Society of Australia, Australians Stay Healthier, http://www.psa.org.au/download/submissions/call-to-action-on-chronic-disease.pdf.

About ESSA

Exercise & Sports Science Australia (ESSA) is the peak professional body for exercise and sports science in Australia and provides national leadership and advocacy on key issues. It supports its 4,000-plus members and the community through fostering excellence in professional practice, education, training and research.

Website: www.essa.org.au

Official media spokesperson for this release

Anita Hobson-Powell
Executive Officer, Exercise & Sports Science Australia (ESSA)
E: Anita.Hobson-Powell@essa.org.au
P: 07 3862 4122
M: 0400 519 800

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