The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) has welcomed confirmation from Health Department officials during recent Senate Estimates hearings that the joint 7.30 Report and Nine newspapers Medicare “investigation” was based entirely on unsubstantiated claims.

At the recent Community Affairs Committee proceedings, the following exchange occurred:

Senator Anne Ruston: Obviously, there’s been much made of an $8 billion claim of fraudulent activity by general practitioners and claiming Medicare. [I’m] just wondering whether the department has met with Dr Margaret Faux about her report.

Professor Brendan Murphy: I might just start and then [go to] Mr McCabe, who has met with her even before the media allegations…we have not found any evidence to support the size of the claim that was made in the media, the $8 billion claim of fraud and billing errors…Mr McCabe met with Dr Faux, we’ve examined the thesis and we find no, it’s essentially an assertion not backed by any evidence that we’ve seen that the issue was that large.”

Later in the hearings:

Senator Anne Ruston: I mean, one of other things that these media claims have made that the department is not able to interrogate, you know, data and detect fraud. Do you have comment on that?

Health Department official Daniel McCabe: No, I disagree with those media claims. We do detect small numbers of fraud cases, but obviously worth lots of money as well that we have…Last financial year, we dealt with upward of 16 matters before the court which resulted in over $24 million worth of matters being found being prosecuted before the courts.

Senator Anne Ruston: Yep. So, obviously, it’s completely incorrect to characterise the department as being impotent when it comes to compliance enforcement…

The Senate Estimates proceedings come following the ABC’s own Sophie Scott challenging claims that Medicare fraud is widespread and instead acknowledging that the Medicare system itself is “at the heart of the problem” rather than deliberate misuse of item numbers.

RACGP President Adj. Professor Karen Price said the information emerging from Senate Estimates was music to the ears of embattled GPs and general practice teams across Australia.

“More and more evidence is emerging that the joint 7 30 and Nine newspapers ‘investigation’ was completely off the mark and a scandalous slur on the profession,” she said “At Senate Estimates, Health Department officials have confirmed what we already knew – there is no real evidence to support the $8 billion claim. The vast majority of hardworking GPs do the right thing and certainly don’t deserve to have their reputations tarnished by sensationalist media coverage.

“Professor Brendan Murphy also noted during the hearings that the RACGP and AMA have reported that our members found the media reports distressing and he is 100% right. This kick in the guts could not have come at a worse time for the nation’s GPs and general practice teams. We are doing our absolute best to help patients who delayed or avoided screenings and consults during the pandemic and care for people with mental health concerns. All of that comes on top of long-held financial pressures caused by insufficient Medicare patient rebates, which have failed to keep pace with the cost of providing high-quality care.

“We are trying to draw more future doctors to the profession so that no patients anywhere experience problems accessing GP care. The 7 30 and Nine newspapers ‘investigation’ threw sand in the gears of that complex mission, and it is truly shameful that neither the RACGP nor the AMA were approached for comment prior to the story airing last month. That is shoddy journalism and the Senate Estimates hearings have exposed yet again that the $8 billion figure was utterly baseless.”

The RACGP President said that the journalists involved in the ‘investigation’ should listen carefully to the nation’s GPs. “I will say it until I am blue in the face - the real problem is not dishonest doctors, rather it’s the complexity of the Medicare system,” she said.

“Our own Health of the Nation report found 47% of GPs either avoided providing certain services or avoided claiming patient rebates out of fear of Medicare compliance ramifications and this impacts patient care. Instead of tabloid-style media coverage kicking GPs when they are down, what we really need are increased resources for Medicare education to support GPs to better understand billing requirements and to give them a fair opportunity to correct any honest mistakes.

“We know that three-quarters of respondents to our survey said that ensuring compliance with Medicare takes time away from actually caring for patients and that is appalling. Some 61% of respondents also reported that the complexity of Medicare is something that worries them outside of their work day and this can really weigh on the shoulders of GPs with a lot on their plate.

“We are having enough difficulty attracting future doctors to general practice and retaining them within the profession. In fact, less than 14% of future doctors are choosing general practice as their specialty of choice. So, it is heartening that Senate Estimates has confirmed what we knew about the 7 30 and Nine newspaper ‘investigation’, but a lot of damage has already been done.

“The college is still eagerly waiting to see whether these unfounded reports are challenged by the ABC’s own Media Watch. I can tell you we certainly hope they tackle it head on.”

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