Medicare’s unwanted $110m rebate ‘windfall’

Medicare rebates totalling $110m sit unclaimed due to 700,000 Australians not registering their bank account details.

Human Services Minister Michael Keenan. Picture: Kym Smith

Medicare has quietly accumulated $110 million in rebates owed to Australians who haven’t managed to make electronic claims since cheques were phased out in 2016.

About 670,000 people have rebates that have gone unclaimed after they personally paid for GP and specialist services upfront and failed to chase up the Medicare contribution.

By not providing Medicare with their bank account details, they have short-changed themselves and inadvertently added to rising out-of-pocket costs in healthcare.

The total of unclaimed rebates held by Medicare is growing — it represents less than half a per cent of the amount paid out each year — and has been compared by Human Services Minister ­Michael Keenan to lost and unclaimed superannuation.

“People tell themselves they will get around to claiming their money one day, but never do,” Mr Keenan said yesterday.

“My advice is set aside a ­couple of minutes as soon as possible to do what is a really ­simple task that will ensure you receive what you are entitled to quickly and easily.”

Couples and families also need to enrol for the Medicare Safety Net, which kicks in once out-of-pocket expenses reach an annual threshold, triggering higher rebates for the rest of the calendar year.

Before cheques were phased out in July 2016, 2.7 million Australians were still using that method, albeit with some cheques never deposited.

Some people do not trust the government with their banking details or sensitive medical information, but the reasons for failing to register with Medicare may vary.

Bulk-billed services allow ­people to sign over their Medicare benefit to the health professional to claim directly from the government, at no added cost to the patient.

While the rate of bulk-billed services continues to increase, and official surveys suggest fewer people are deferring treatment because of cost, the Coalition government has acknowledged that hidden or extreme out-of-pocket costs are a problem.

Health Minister Greg Hunt partially thawed the Medicare indexation freeze, but some health groups are lobbying for an increase in rebates to avoid having to charge patients more.

GP satisfaction with Medicare service delivery, as reported by the government, has declined over the past two years.

Labor has long campaigned on a platform to protect Medicare but is yet to announce its policy. Opposition health spokeswoman Catherine King has complained of rising out-of-pocket costs.

As part of the private health reform process, Mr Hunt had a ministerial advisory committee on out-of-pocket costs, chaired by Chief Medical Officer ­Brendan Murphy, provide ­options to improve transparency and reporting.

The committee largely ­focused on unexpected gap fees for specialist services, with another possible solution being to allow GPs to offer referrals to several specialists for the patient to compare before a consultation.

At its last meeting, members “reinforced the importance of an effective education campaign for consumers, GPs and medical specialists about out-of-pocket costs”.