Campaign against Govt cataract fee changes
The Australian Society of Ophthalmologists have set up a campaign – Grandma’s not happy – “to inform the public about the consequences of the Cataract Rebate cut planned for November 2009”.
However some experts, such as the Consumers Health Forum head, Carol Bennett, have argued that opthalmologists are exploiting vulnerable health consumers and that this was unethical behaviour for a professional group campaigning to maintain their high incomes.
She said that ophthalmologists who perform the cataract surgery will receive a minimum $300 rebate and that the operation will take less than 30 minutes.
Meanwhile the Australian Medical Association launched a survey of more than 500 eye specialists to gather information about the duration and frequency of cataract surgery as tensions mount over the Government plan to slash Medicare rebates for the procedure.
The Association said the survey represents the “grassroots consultation with doctors that the Government failed to do” before it announced the 50% rebate cut in the May budget.
Under the cut, to come into effect on 1 November, the rebate for cataract surgery will fall from $831.60 to $409.60. The Government said it is attempting to negotiate with ophthalmologists the level for a new, higher fee intended to be used for more complex cataract operations that cannot be done as quickly as more typical cases.
However, relations between ophthalmologists and the Government have rapidly deteriorated since two eye specialist organisations, backed by a senior’s charity, launched a publicity campaign aimed at stirring public pressure for the cuts to be reversed.
