Ipswich records 42 per cent increase in GP appointment fees

Federal Ipswich MP Shayne Neumann has called the increase in GP appointment fees a “disgrace” that only creates more problems for his electorate’s residents who are already suffering through a pandemic.

The cost of seeing a GP and a specialist is increasing every year in Ipswich.

Ipswich residents are now paying 42 per cent more to visit a general practitioner than they were eight years ago, new data has revealed.

The cost of seeing a specialist has also swelled by an enormous 67 per cent in the same time.

According to the Department of Health, the average out-of-pocket cost for GP non-referred attendances in the Blair electorate was $39.20 last year, up from $36.19 in 2019-20.

Costs have slowly increased every year since 2012-13 when residents paid, on average, $27.62 out of pocket for a standard appointment with a GP.

The average out-of-pocket cost for specialist attendances in Blair was $88.03 last year, up from $78.87 in 2019-20 and $52.84 in 2012-13.

Patients at medical centres across Ipswich who do not have Medicare now pay about $80 for a standard appointment.

At clinics where doctors do bulk bill, and in situations where the patient does have Medicare, a standard appointment may cost nothing out of pocket.

Federal Ipswich MP Shayne Neumann said the rising out-of-pocket costs within his electorate were a national shame.

“This creates more problems for everyday Australians, who are already suffering through this pandemic,” he said.

“The last thing people need is to choose between putting food on the table and seeing a doctor.”

Mr Neumann said the increases to out-of-pocket expenses associated with seeing a GP were yet another blow to local health services, after the removal of bulk billing incentives for Ipswich and changes to GP workforce distribution priority areas.

There are however still a significant number of medical practices in Ipswich that offer bulk billing services.

Among the city’s centres that bulk bill are Smartclinics Ipswich, Ipswich Specialist Skin Cancer and GP Clinic, Kambu Health, Riverlink Family Practice, Raceview Surgery, and Riverlink Medical and Dental Centre.

In comparison to other Queensland electorates, Blair is fairing reasonably well with regard to medical appointment costs.

The average cost of seeing a GP in Brisbane in 2020-21 was $43.77 while the cost of seeing a specialist was $102.96.

In Maranoa, the cost of seeing a GP and a specialist was $39.88 and $92.86 respectively last year.