The average out-of-pocket cost for Hunter patients to see a GP has risen by 58 per cent in a decade, Medicare data shows. Login or signup to continue reading This gap fee was $47.06 in the June quarter, rising from $41.
04 in the same period last year and $29.80 in 2013/14. The amount, which covers the Hunter New England and Central Coast primary health network, was similar to the NSW rate of $47.
44 and the national rate of $47.69. The data showed the GP bulk-billing rate was 74.
9 per cent in Hunter New England/Central Coast in the June quarter. This rose from 72.8 per cent in the same quarter last year, but was well below the 82.
3 per cent rate in 2013/14. Dr Max Mollenkopf, of Whitebridge Medical Centre, said the federal government was "gaslighting the general population with its bulk-billing narrative". "They are trying to tell you as a consumer that you are getting bulk-billed more and you're better off under their changes," Dr Mollenkopf said.
"If you ask yourself and your neighbour, am I getting bulk-billed more, have I got more in my pocket, the answer is invariably no." The government said the data showed that "almost three out of four visits to the GP are bulk-billed in the Hunter" and the out-of-pocket costs applied to about "one in four visits that were not bulk-billed". But Dr Mollenkopf said the government was "trying to sell a narrative to the population".
"People just need to look around and realise it's not actually true," he said. He said a key reason why the .