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Welcome to our first newsletter for 2017 and Happy New Year!
We hope you managed to steal some downtime over the holidays and have returned refreshed and ready for 2017.
Here at Synapse, we are already off to a flying start with a burst of new clients joining us to get their …
A Ministerial Advisory Committee on private health reform has proposed an increase in Medicare rebates as a way of reducing out-of-pocket costs when rural patients require inpatient services. It seems logical but will it really achieve its objective? In this article Margaret expl…
Welcome to our last newsletter for 2016.
At the end of our seventh year in business we have never been more focused as we expand our service offerings in ways I would never have imagined when I started Synapse with two people in my front room in January 2010. All services cont…
In this article recently published in The Medical Republic, Margaret Faux discusses the myth that 85% of GP services are bulk billed. Please click on the below link to read this fascinating article.
http://www.medicalrepublic.com.au/lies-damned-lies-medicare-bulk-billing-rate…
It’s time to celebrate because Synapps 2.2.0 is finally here!
As promised our new and improved app version 2.2.0 is now available from the app store:
Once you have download version 2.2.0 of Synapps you will immediately see the changes we have made to make your bi…
We are excited to announce that our latest version of Synapps – version 2.2.0 – will be released next week. We have been working tirelessly on improving the app, always remaining strongly focused on compliant billing.
In addition to minor bug fixes and enhancements, please…
Well spring has sprung but you would be forgiven for questioning that, with temperatures still in the teens in Sydney, Adelaide and Melbourne!
There is a lot to tell you, as there has been much happening across the Synapse teams over the past few months. We have been busily wo…
In this podcast recorded live on ABC overnights Margaret Faux discusses the federal government’s plans to privatise Medicare in the context of the 2016 Federal Election….
Medicare expenditure on after hours GP services has risen dramatically in the past year. But does it really keep patients out of Emergency Departments. Margaret Faux chatted with Ellen Leadbeater on 2SER FM’s Think Health about the rise in after hours care. Listen to the full tra…
We have come to expect that our politicians will dismiss each other’s policies as scaremongering when it’s expedient to do so. But we demand more of our journalists, whose job it is to provide balance and perspective. Last night the ABC let us down in this regard when it comes …
Margaret Faux’s recent Croakey post, republished on the Medical Republic, explaining the devastating impact an end to bulk billing will have on patients. Read the full article on medicalrepublic.com.au…
Welcome to our winter newsletter. We recently launched an exciting new service at the AMA National Conference, where we were the platinum sponsor. It represents further innovation and a response to demands for flexibility and tailored solutions. You can now have the Synapse medic…
In this recent Croakey article, Margaret Faux explains the real impact of the freeze on patients and how use of the term ‘co-payment’ is misleading and often poorly understood.
Read the story in full on Croakey.org…
We are pleased to be this years Platinum Sponsor at the AMA National Conference for 2016.
This year, organisers have confirmed a conference that looks better than ever. They have lined up exciting speakers, interactive sessions, master class CPD sessions all within a famil…
The year has definitely kicked off with a bang for Synapse! We have a new website which will be launched later this week, and we have news on app developments, the rapid growth of Appointmaid and more. We have also opened a brand new large scale delivery centre to man…
Will outsourcing Medicare payments lead to privatisation? Phillip Adams of ABC’s Late Night Live asks just this of Margaret Faux – as US outsourcing firm, Accenture, rumours to be interested in tendering for Medicare’s payment systems.
‘Healthy is the new wealthy’ is one of …
In this recent Croakey article, Margaret Faux challenges the Government’s position and argues that the proposal to outsource Medicare payments could lead to long-term and irreversible changes to the fundamental nature of Medicare.
Read the story in full on Croakey.org
&nb…
Our very own Margaret Faux answers some questions for journalist Kate McDonald of PULSE+IT, as the story breaks that the Australian government is looking at privatising or outsourcing Medicare claiming and payments.
The idea of outsourcing the notoriously complex Medicare paym…
Medicare is one of those things that’s distinctly Australian but does it need to adapt to the times? Margaret Faux is a lawyer, registered nurse and founder of Synapse Medical Services.
Her PhD is entitled “Claiming and compliance under the Medicare Benefits Schedule: A critic…
Health Minister Sussan Ley’s office has come under fire for her recent comments, saying patients should be “suspicious” of pathologists’ estimates of how much they would have to pay for pap smears and blood tests to recover planned federal cuts. Our very own Margaret Faux dispute…
The pap smear debacle exposes an amnesia at the heart of government, where reforms are born in a vacuum and informed debate takes a back seat, writes Margaret Faux.
Ready the story in full on Croakey.org
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The Synapse office will remain open over the Christmas period with the exception of the public holidays.
There may be some minor delays in completing your files as we will be operating with skeleton staff.
We wish you all a safe and happy festive season and than…
What a year! It’s seems that only a moment ago we sent out the April newsletter and yet here we are, drawing close to the end of 2015. I’m delighted to be able to finally take a breath and update you on the exciting developments at Synapse since we last spoke.
…
In this piece, Margaret Faux argues that the political climate on fee-for-service medicine is shifting, with the Minister for Health and her Government colleagues prepared to explore alternative options, at least for the management of people with chronic illnesses in primary heal…
2ser 107.3 take a look at the health professional behind your Medicare transaction.
How knowledgable are they about rebates? Could the government save money by investing in Medicare training for doctors? They speak to Margaret Faux, a PhD student in the Faculty of Health at th…
This bulletin contains important information about changes at HCF that will affect you from 1 July 2015. Please take a moment to read it now.
Best wishes,
IMPORTANT: Changes at HCF require action by you by 29 June 2015
Effective 1 July 2015, HCF is introduci…
April newsletter
Welcome to our first newsletter for 2015.
It’s already been an exciting year for Synapse, with our new Melbourne office now open for business and a new budget billing service, Synapse Saver, coming on stream next month. We’ve brought in some talented ne…
The Federal Government’s co-payments Plan B will add another layer of co-payment complexity to the Medicare system that neither doctors nor patients fully understand. Margaret Faux discusses a whole range of issues that this has raised in her recent article.
Ready the story …
Welcome to our last newsletter for 2014.
It’s been another bumper year at Synapse with solid growth in all areas. Our in-house purpose-built Appointmaid patient scheduling platform was rolled out and the service continues to attract more and more new clients. We …