Specialist anaesthesia doctor’s services are separate from those provided by the surgeon and hospital. My fee is based on the length and difficulty of the anaesthesia service, and may not be completely covered by health fund rebates, so that a gap (or out-of-pocket) may have to be paid. This is because health fund rebates have not risen in parallel with the cost of providing anaesthesia services.
Your actual bill may vary from the estimate that in most cases will be sent to you prior to your child’s operation / procedure– for instance if the procedure takes a longer or shorter time than expected. Also, some health funds pay a lower rebate than others, which means the out-of-pocket payment will be higher.
There are three groups of funds:
Medibank Private, Australian Unity and over 40 Australian Health Service Alliance funds. These funds cover >2/3 anaesthetic fee with their known gap facility. For your convenience I will send the claimable portion of the account directly to the fund and the balance of the account (gap) will be sent to you.
GMHBA, LaTrobe, Druids, Federation Health. The claimable portion will be sent to your fund. These funds pay a lower benefit. The balance (gap) will be sent to you.
BUPA, HBA, NIB, MBF, HCF, Manchester Unity. These funds do not have a known gap facility and cover < 1/3 anaesthetic fee. The total account will be sent to you.
Patients with no private health insurance will be responsible for a larger gap payment. You may be required to pay the bill prior to the procedure. You will receive a receipt enabling you to claim your rebate from Medicare.
Patients with no cover under Medicare are responsible for ensuring their bill is paid in full by an agreed method prior to the procedure.
For further information please contact A/Prof Chalkiadis on 9345 5233.