A Newcastle doctor says the federal government should publish bulk-billing data in a way that gives a clear picture of the number of people receiving free medical treatment. Login or signup to continue reading Dr Milton Sales said more accurate figures were needed to show what patients were "paying or not". "They're spinning the statistics," said Dr Sales, of the Brunker Rd General Practice at Adamstown.
"Of doctor consults in Newcastle, a very small percentage would be bulk-billed. "It's the add-ons that are bulk-billed and they're counting them in their statistics and calling them visits." Shortland MP Pat Conroy said the Albanese government had "ensured transparent reporting of bulk-billing rates".
The Newcastle Herald reported last Monday that federal data for the June quarter showed the GP bulk-billing rate was 74.9 per cent in the Hunter New England/Central Coast health network. This rose from 72.
8 per cent in the same quarter last year. The federal government said this showed the bulk-billing incentives it had offered to GPs since November 1 were working. These incentives - which Newcastle GPs say aren't enough to cover costs - encourage bulk-billing of patients aged under 16, pensioners and concession card holders.
The government had said its data showed that "almost three out of four visits to the GP are bulk-billed in the Hunter". As reported last Monday, Whitebridge doctor Max Mollenkopf said the government was "gaslighting the general population with its bulk-bill.