Entries by Richard Hart

Queensland Joins the Payroll Tax of GP

Following the precedents set in Victoria and NSW it is now appears  that the Queensland State Revenue office has  commenced levying retrospective payroll taxes on GP Practices and that medicare and professional fees paid to independent  GPs are considered to be be payments to “employees” for the purpose of determining payroll tax liability.

General Practice is on the Edge of a Cliff

General Practice is on the edge of a cliff and has been put there by the actions of Successive Governments.

There are three key components to a high quality primary healthcare system

  • Professionals- Sufficient well trained and appropriately remunerated staff including GPs, Nurses, Allied Health Professionals and  Administration staff,
  • Practices – High quality infrastructure provided by GP Practices with up to date standards and facilities, and
  • Patient Access- Ease of patient access which is impacted by  cost of access,  timeliness of access, and the transportability of access (competition between GP Practices)

Most GPs work in Principal led […]

Transition to Private Billing

Transition to Private Billing

Presented by: AGPA

Speakers:

Dr Trish Baker, Dr Bernard Shiu, Dr Mukesh Haikerwal, and Dr Richard Barker

Tuesday 9 August 2022

 

Since 2010 health costs have increased at about 5% per year. MBS funding has increased by about 0.5%. This has put significant pressure on Practice viability.

Many Practices that were traditionally bulk billing or mixed billing Practices have started or are considering […]

Meet the Candidates 2022

The candidates:

Dr Julian Fidge

Dr Charlotte Hespe

Dr Nicole Higgins

Dr Chris Irwin

Professor Brad Murphy

Dr Chris Ogonowski

Dr Kate Wylie

Primary health care in Australia is led by Practice Principals who work in the Practices they own, providing clinical leadership and facilities to deliver a high quality, community based, primary healthcare system.

[…]

Expanded Eligibility Criteria for COVID-19 Antiviral Treatments

The Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee has expanded the eligibility criteria for COVID-19 oral antiviral treatments, Paxlovid (nirmatrelvir and ritonavir) and molnupiravir (Lagevrio) effective from 11 July 2022.

It is important that primary care providers familiarise themselves with the updated criteria and pre-identify potential patients before they test positive for COVID-19 so medication options can be explored and included in their care plan to expediate treatment within that critical 5-day window from symptom onset (noting those over 70 years may commence treatment while asymptomatic following a positive test).

This decision is in response to the latest evidence on the effectiveness and safety of the medicines, […]

Updated ATAGI Advice – Winter Booster

ATAGI have expanded recommendations on winter COVID-19 booster doses to include people aged 16-64 years who have complex, chronic or severe conditions that are considered to increase their risk of severe illness from COVID-19.

Today’s announcement from the Health Minister Senator Katy Gallagher estimates that this will include an additional 1.5 M Australians

The 25 May provider bulletin is here

The additional groups are included in the attachment table here

The ATAGI Q&A regarding the revised winter dose is here