Effective 1 July 2024, Hampstead Health will increase its fees to a $35 gap including a $8 (inc GST) ‘Practice Administration Fee’ which will be applied to all privately billed consultations
A number of factors have resulted in the increase in fees including rising operational costs such as staff wages, I.T., insurance, rates, electricity and the Government’s new payroll tax.
The federal government has failed to increase Medicare inline with these higher costs.
The new fee structure will include a $8 (including GST) Practice Administration Fee to cover the increasing cost of running the practice including the new Payroll Tax on doctors that was introduced by the State Government on 1st July 2024.
The South Australian Government has recently made the decision to include payments to doctors for the purpose of calculating Payroll Tax.
Doctors have always been independent practitioners that do not receive holiday, superannuation & other employee entitlements. Despite this, the Malinauskas government have decided that they will treat doctors as employees for the purpose of collecting additional payroll tax.
Payroll Tax on doctors is a tax on health care. While the SA Government has excluded bulkbilling consultations from this tax, to remain viable the practice has no choice but to increase patient fees to cover this massive increase in cost.
General Practice is the most efficient means to deliver health care in the community. Hampstead Health fundamentally disagrees with the re-classification of doctors as employees for payroll tax. It will lead to a higher cost to patients & will have a negative impact on the overall health system as more patients opt for public hospital emergency departments.
The practice encourages all patients to object to the introduction of payroll tax on payments to doctors with your local member of parliament. Hampstead Health is in the state electorate of Enfield & the sitting member is Hon Andrea Michaels. Andrea can be emailed at enfield@parliament.sa.gov.au.
From 1st July 2024 there will be a $35 gap fee for face to face and telehealth consultations for patients with a Medicare card
Patients 15 years old or younger, healthcare, pension and DVA card holders, will continue to be bulk billed at all times.
Please note, payment for the gap fee as well as the Medicare item fee is payable up front at the time of consultation Payments are accepted by credit card, debit card or cash (surcharges apply for card payments)
*Telephone consultations will also incur a Stripe online payment surcharge
Fee schedule:
| Face to face & video consultations – 8am to 5.30 pm weekdays, Saturday before 1pm | |||
| Consult Level (determined by your GP) |
Up Front Fee (Paid on day of consultation) |
Medicare Rebate | Gap |
| A | $54.60 | $19.60 | $35 |
| B | $77.85 | $42.45 | $35 |
| C | $117.90 | $82.90 | $35 |
| D | $157.15 | $122.15 | $35 |
| Telephone consultations 8am -5.30pm | |||
| Consult Level (determined by your GP) |
Up Front Fee (Paid on day of consultation) |
Medicare Rebate | Gap
|
| Brief consult less than 6 minutes (item 91890) | $54.60 | $19.60 | $35 |
| Extended consult more than 6 minutes (item 91891) | $77.85 | $42.45 | $35 |
| Afterhours consultations – From 1pm Saturdays and all day Sundays and public holidays | |||
| Consult Level (determined by your GP) |
Up Front Fee (Paid on day of consultation) |
Medicare Rebate |
Gap |
| A | $68 | $33 | $35 |
| B | $90.80 | $55.80 | $35 |
| C | $130.70 | $95.70 | $35 |
| D | $169.20 | $134.20 | $35 |
| Other services or procedures that attract a gap fee | Gap Fee |
| Antenatal Share Care (5 visits from 20 weeks of pregnancy) | $60 |
| Implanon insertion and/or removal | $50 |
| Mirena insertion | $100 |
| Iron infusion | $138 |
| Skin procedures | $100 |
| Mental Health Care Plans | $35 |
| Biopsies | $25 |
| Procedure consumables | $20 |
Eftpos 0.80%
Stripe 1.75% + 30 cents
| Credit and debit card surcharges | |||
| Mastercard credit | 1.8% | Visa credit | 1.8% |
| Mastercard debit | 1% | Visa debit | 1% |
| UnionPay credit | 1.5% | UnionPay debit | 0.80% |
