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Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
Before answering only one question today, I have one correction/addition, and one update:
1. For the geriatrician who correctly allocated item 92623 reported in last night’s bulletin, there was another option that I omitted which was…
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
Here are answers to today’s questions.
1. Is it permissible to get credit card payment prior to a telehealth consult? For example, a few days before when the appointment is set up, or earlier on the day of the consult, can you take a…
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
Here are answers to today’s questions
1. Why does the MBS exclude the item number combination 342 and 288, is it explicitly stipulated anywhere?
Yes, the item 342 and 288 combination is explicitly restricted in the General Medic…
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
First an update further to our news flash yesterday. The new law implements the following from today:
Specialists and allied health providers no longer have to bulk bill Covid items
GP bulk bill incentive items 10990 and 10991 have …
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
News flash!
HUGE NEWS – A new Determination has appeared on the register today that wasn’t there yesterday (unless I’m going mad) that appears to have effectively ended forced bulk billing for everyone except GPs.
Here’s the lin…
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
Is it still acceptable to say, ‘happy Friday?’ Or is that now so pre-COVID?
Before answering today’s questions, we at Synapse just want to end the week by saying we hope you are all travelling well, and we thank you again, over and…
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
Here’s answers to today’s questions.
1. You mentioned in an earlier bulletin we could charge a 92422 /92431 (132 equivalent) on the phone, then if we need to do a face to face can still charge a 132. Is this correct?
So firstly,…
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
We are going to dedicate tonight’s bulletin to confusion. It is obvious from the questions that came in today there is a lot of confusion out there, which is not surprising with the laws changing every five minutes. Here’s some examples…
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
Welcome to another week in isolation and more COVID MBS questions answered. As we launch into the new week, we just want to say again how much we are enjoying being able to provide this service for you, our front line health workers. It is …
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
Thank you all once again for your kind words of support and humour this week. Three weeks in and we hope you’re all staying strong.
More great questions today but also something worrying, alas, so let’s start with that.
We want to s…
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
The constantly shifting billing goal posts are beginning to take their toll, with providers becoming understandably more and more confused about what is or isn’t compliant billing during COVID times. Please hang in there. You are all doin…
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
Here’s answers to yesterdays questions. There’ll be another update later tonight.
1. I am a Cardiologist and have a patient for whom I previously billed item 132, then 2 x 133 over the next five months. I have just reviewed the pat…
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
Lots to share today. Great news for some with expansion of specialist services, but a whole new world of pain opened up with public patients moving to private hospitals – that’s public in private not private in public.
In the interes…
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
First some news. I am reliably informed that the reason today’s laws were not formally announced was because the forced bulk billing issue is still in discussion and further changes to the Determinations are imminent. This is a positive d…
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
News flash!
The government has been busy over the weekend, enacting the below raft of Determinations
Health Insurance (Section 3C General Medical Services – COVID-19 Telehealth and Telephone Attendances) Amendment Determination 20…
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
Following on from yesterday’s bulletin, as promised, this is an explainer on the law around who can request COVID pathology tests.
We have been informed that some pathology companies, who are probably themselves struggling to keep up w…
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
Here’s answers to today’s questions:
1. I live in a rural area where the usual telehealth item numbers can be billed. Can I still charge a gap?
Yes, you can. There is no attempt by the Government to force bulk billing for anythi…
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
Here’s answers to today’s questions:
1. Does the bulk bill incentive apply only to existing pensioners, concessions card holders and under 16s?
Yes, it does, and only for GP and ‘other practitioner’ items, which are usuall…
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
It’s quality over quantity today. Some razor sharp insights in the last few questions.
Here’s answers to today’s questions:
1. I am a Surgeon. Can I charge my patients private fees for my consultations via telehealth? Or can I…
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
Here’s answers to today’s questions:
1. For usual rural telehealth we usually email the patient asking for their electronic “yes” to assign their Medicare benefit to the practitioner who cared for them but I have recently read …
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
Following on from yesterday’s bulletin, as promised, this is an explainer on the law around the requirement for patients to sign the Bulk Bill voucher, known as the DB4 form.
As an academic scholar of Medicare law, bulk billing strikes…
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
Firstly, thank you all for your generous words of support in relation to these bulletins. It is the least we can do, putting our totally weird area of specialisation to use at a time when Medicare billing just got a whole lot more complex. …
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
Following on from our bulletin earlier today, the new Determination is now on the Commonwealth Law Register and commences tomorrow, 30 March 2020. Here is the link https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/F2020L00342
The changes focus most…
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
Stage 4 has just been announced in a joint media release which you can read here https://www.health.gov.au/ministers/the-hon-greg-hunt-mp/media/covid-19-whole-of-population-telehealth-for-patients-general-practice-primary-care-and-other-med…
Dear Doctors and Health Care Workers
Thanks to everyone who has reported successful experiences charging gaps for COVID services, following which patients have successfully obtained their Medicare rebates. Whilst interesting, this represents nothing more than how Medicare has …
Dear Doctors and all Health Care Workers
Lots of excellent questions today, many of which will be relevant to all practitioners because they deal (again) with the bulk bill issue, correct use of provider numbers and an update from the Department about signing bulk bill voucher…
Dear Doctors and all Health Care Workers
The key message today is that, despite some excitement around the prospect of all Australians being able to talk to a medical practitioner online for free from next week, we do not know the details and it is not yet law.
Talking ‘f…
Dear Doctors and all Health Care Workers
First an update on the news flash announced in yesterday’s bulletin.
1. The Health Minister announced an extension of vulnerability criteria for Health Professionals.
This mirrors the criteria for vulnerable patients and repre…
Dear Doctors and all Health Care Workers
A new week of COVID MBS billing questions answered. We hope you are all managing OK out there on the frontline.
In addition to questions from specialists, we are now receiving questions from GPs, Nurse Practitioners and Allied Health…
Dear Doctors
Below are the responses to today’s questions, some great news from the Department and a weekly wrap up. Let’s start with some very welcome news from Medicare.
Questions
1.You no longer have to print and retain bulk bill forms AND will not be audited in r…