This is a brief guide for GPs on Medicare item 4001. Non-directive Pregnancy Support Counselling Service – Medicare Item 4001 is worth $79.70. The Pregnancy Support Counselling item is for:ยท pregnant; orยท who has been pregnant in the 12 months. Item 4001 can be billed three times per patient, per Read more
Question: Can a GP bill Medicare twice in one day for the same patient? Answer: Yes, a GP can bill the same patient twice on the same day if both attendances are reasonably spaced out in time and not being a continuation of the initial service. Attendancies must be reasonably Read more
Home Medication Review or Domiciliary Medication Management Review (DMMR) is one of the least used items by GPs. There are reasons for that. Firstly, DMMR is perceived as a cumbersome labour-intensive item. Secondly, there are some misconceptions about eligibility for DMMR. In fact, DMMR (HMR) is a very useful and Read more
Guide to General Practitioners. This post is not legal advice but rather a recollection of Medicare audits encountered by the author. My name is Paul Soloviev. I have had 20 years of consulting career in General Practice. Why GPs need to improve Medicare compliance and minimise the risk of Medicare Read more
A GP clinic, as a private health service provider, cannot delete a patient’s medical file until a certain period of time passed. This period of time is seven years since the last service, or for the person under 18 years old until they reach 25 years old. Should the patient Read more
Question from a GP: I have had several patients lately who clearly stated that they do not consent to COVID-19 vaccination. Yet, they asked me to be vaccinated because otherwise, they would lose their jobs, houses etc. Am I, potentially, in trouble? Answer: This was probably, the most uncomfortable question Read more
To serve or not to serve? There is the question – Whether ‘tis nobler to serve unvaccinated or show them to the door to claim the need of the Divine Protection? Now seriously. Healthcare businesses in Victoria face a legal, moral and financial dilemma of providing services to people unvaccinated Read more
Question from Dr M: Can I work from home and bill Medicare on the provider number registered at my home address? Answer: This question is asked again and again by some of our consulting clients. The simple answer is – yes. Billing Medicare from home is not a complicated process. Read more
Question: Does the Government’s No Fault COVID-19 Indemnity Scheme fully protect me from any claims by the patients? Answer: In August 2021 Australian Government introduced the No Fault COVID-19 Indemnity Scheme. The Scheme will provide Australians with quick access to compensation for COVID-19 claims related to the administration of a Read more
The short answer is that GP CANNOT bulk bill and charge privately on the same occasion. There is one exception only – a supply of the vaccine from the GP’s stock. GPs and practices often try to circumvent these rules. They try to bulk bill for some items and privately Read more