Australia proposes two tier system for paying for GP consultations

The Australian government's controversial plans to reform Medicare, the national public health system, have been rejected by the four major doctors' groups, which claim that the proposals will not resolve the crisis in general practice.

The latest changes to the system are designed to tackle the developing shortage of GPs and the growing problem of poor people in some areas having to pay for visiting a doctor. In some places, GPs charge patients a “gap” fee for consultations, demanding the shortfall between what the government reimburses them for the consultation and the scheduled fee.

The most radical changes in the system's 19 year history will see it effectively split into two tiers, …