Our Billing Explained
Your GP will bill you according to their own fees and this would usually involve a private fee. Your doctor would appreciate full payment of fees on the day of consultation. Fees are payable by cash, credit card or EFTPOS. Accounts are unfortunately not able to be given. A Medicare rebate will often apply to consultation fees and at the time of payment the practice can apply your rebate directly into your bank account via your EFTPOS card, OR you may choose to have it directly deposited into your account from Medicare. The AMA fee structure forms the basis of your GP’s billing policy and their fees reflect the time that is taken and the degree of complexity in each consultation. Please also note that several of the doctors are independent service providers and may set their own fee rates. Please enquire with reception regarding the fees for your doctor at the time of booking particularly for procedures.
FAQ
1. What is bulk billing?
Bulk billing means that the doctor is paid directly by Medicare, on behalf of the patient. This means that the amount paid for each medical service is the amount set by the Australian Government. Note that some consultations such as occupational and Workcover consultations are not covered at all by Medicare and will need to be paid for privately at the time of consultation.
2. Do the doctors bulk bill?
Some services are bulk billed, including chronic disease care plans (item 721) and Government-funded health assessments.
3. Why don’t the doctors bulk bill everything?
Unfortunately, the amount set by the Government for a consultation is insufficient to cover the costs of providing a high-quality medical service. For example, the Medicare rebate for a standard consultation is $41.20. The government provides this amount for a complex consultation lasting up to 20 minutes, and from this, the doctor pays a percentage to the practice to cover practice running and facility use costs.
4. Why would I choose to pay a private fee rather than go to a bulk billing clinic?
Because of the low value the Australian Government places on primary care and General Practitioners as discussed above, bulk billing doctors will often need to see more patients in an hour, often need patients to come back to get test results and may not be able to spend as much time addressing your medical needs. At Whitsunday Family Practice we aim to assist the doctors to have the day run smoothly and to keep waiting times to a minimum, we have an excellent recall and test result notification system so that your doctor may be able to avoid asking you to attend for unnecessary follow up, and our excellent staff and service philosophy ensure your experience is as pleasant as possible.
We value the doctors working from our practice and assist them to maintain a very high-quality service and therefore assist the doctors in the provision of a private billing service.
Fees- fee estimates are provided at the time of booking, and your doctor will provide a quote if additional fees are payable.
Practice Fee’s 2023
| SERVICE | ITEM NUMBER | FEE ON THE DAY | MEDICARE REBATE | OUT OF POCKET |
| Brief Consult | 3 | $50.00 | $18.85 | $31.15 |
| Standard Consult | 23 | $80.00 | $41.20 | $38.80 |
| Long Consult | 36 | $120.00 | $79.70 | $40.30 |
| Prolonged Consult 40+ mins | 44 | $165.00 | $117.40 | $47.60 |
| Mental Health Consultation | 2713 | $140.00 | $78.55 | $61.45 |
| Mental Health Care Plan | 2700/2715 | $140.00 | $78.55-$99.70 | $61.45 – $40.30 |
| Antenatal | 16500 | $85.00 | $43.95 | $41.05 |