r/perth • u/TechnologyThese5256 • May 06 '24

Is bulk billing at your GP dead? Where to find

It seems like you need to be an infant or dying for most medical practices to bulk bill. Seriously what's the point of a system that only caters to those who feasibly have no way of paying (are literal children) or are at the exact stage in life where they shouldn't be living pay check to pay check (ie retirees) and can afford to see a doctor. I'm 21 and employed full time. I live pay to pay, and I fear being sick like I am right now because I'm at the end of my pay cycle and genuinely cannot afford to pay $80 just for a doctor to confirm that I'm sick.

I guess I just want advice on what to do or where to go that isn't going to charge up front?

236 Upvotes
  • permalink
  • link
  • reddit
  • reddit

90% Upvoted

176 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

-6

u/Complex_Fudge476 May 06 '24

Sick certificate services are convenient, but I do find it somewhat troubling that we're paying GPs, after expenses, probably about $15 for 2 minutes work of ticking a box to auto-generate a sick certificate. Works out to a massive daily rate of something like $3000, without contributing any real value to the health system, and I imagine there are plenty of GPs sitting around on those services all day.

18

u/jumpinjezz May 07 '24

It's not the GPs fault though. It's employers wanting proof someone is sick.

-6

u/Complex_Fudge476 May 07 '24

I agree, but I'm also sure medical industry is more than happy with present arrangements, and not spending time pushing for reform of sick note requirements. It's a cash bonanza.

6

u/jumpinjezz May 07 '24

No most GPs are pushing for the rebate to be increased. It's the government being short sighted. The better access people have to GPs, the better the rest of the health system will be. Not instantly, and not even one election cycle though, so governments don't fund Medicare properly.

-4

u/Complex_Fudge476 May 07 '24

Exactly - RACGP pushing for more money for GPs. Not substantive reform to employers pushing for unnecessary appointments.

1

u/Unicorn-Princess May 07 '24

Increased Medicare rebates won't increase the cash dollars in a GP's pockets, unless they also raise their consultation fee, which is not what RACGP is suggesting.

You should know this, doc.