If The Greens get their way, GPs will have (another) shiny, new, condition-specific health assessment item to bill.
The newest pitch for primary health funding ahead of this year’s federal election has come from The Greens, who are proposing $181 million for ADHD and autism assessments.
These would be billable by GPs, nurse practitioners, paediatricians, psychiatrists and psychologists and open to people of all ages.
As with previous pledges from The Greens this election cycle, this initiative would be funded by taxing large corporations under so-called “Robin Hood Reforms”.
“Access to a formal ADHD or autism diagnosis unlocks support, but it currently comes at a hefty price tag,” Greens disability spokesman Jordan Steele-John said.
“Nobody should have to pay thousands of dollars just to begin the conversation, especially when we know this community is likely already struggling with a lack of support.”
Today’s announcement did not include an estimate of what the rebate for the proposed assessment items would be worth, but the proposal has been costed by the Parliamentary Budget Office.
Related
The release also mentioned the lack of regulations around the out-of-pocket fees that non-GP specialists charge for ADHD and Autism assessments.
Medicare currently subsidises the cost of a 45-minute-or-more consult by a specialist psychiatrist for patients under 25 who are being assessed for a complex neurodevelopmental disorder such as autism via item 289.
This is only billable once in a patient’s lifetime and is worth $305.15.
The Greens’ announcement coincided with the Department of Health and Aged Care releasing a national roadmap to improve the health of autistic people.
GP-specific action items included in the document included considering how to improve access and affordability of primary care services through different funding models for diagnosis pathways and working out how to ensure GPs have the ability to spend more time with autistic patients.
Another action item for consideration was developing resources to help clinics design waiting rooms that take sensory conditions for patients with autism into account.
At time of writing, no date had been set for the 2025 federal election.
Keep up with the latest promises, asks and gaffes at TMR’s election hub.
