The Federal Government's response to the Disability Royal Commission shows governments can improve access to services for people with a disability through support for multidisciplinary teams and by ensuring general practice is properly funded.
While the response to the Disability Royal Commission is welcome, the number of fully supported recommendations is disappointing, and all levels of government must ensure patients' usual general practice can help them navigate the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), the Royal Australian College of GPs (RACGP) said.
To support this, the College has called on the Government to:
- remunerate GPs for completing paperwork, reports, and documentation for the NDIS, preferably through a properly funded voluntary patient registration model
- ensure GPs receive a copy of their patients' NDIS plans where patients consent
- boost Medicare patient rebates for consultations lasting longer than 20 minutes by 20% to ensure GPs are funded to support and advocate for NDIS patients' often-complex needs.
RACGP President Dr Nicole Higgins said: "The NDIS is complex. GPs often need to spend a significant amount of time preparing reports and paperwork for NDIS applicants, without remuneration. We do this to support our patients, but this is time-consuming work GPs aren't compensated for.
"When a person is applying to the NDIS, it's often their GP who provides evidence of their disability and assessments or reports outlining the applicant's functional capacity. Most people would be surprised to learn their GP is expected to write reports and assessments for free, but that's how the system currently operates. If we want an effective and efficient system, this should not be unpaid work.
"This isn't just a matter of fairness. Unremunerated work can really impact practice viability at a time when we've already seen too many closures. These have included practices that support the more vulnerable members of our communities.
"It's also essential GPs receive a copy of their patient's NDIS plan where our patients consent for this. This is basic stuff. Having to request a copy of a care plan is frustrating for not just us, but our NDIS patients too."
Dr Higgins also called for an immediate 20% increase to Medicare patient rebates for consultations that last more than 20 minutes to bring patient funding into line with shorter consultations.
"Disability is a complex area, and many patients on the NDIS have other chronic health conditions to manage at the same time. This often requires longer consultations, yet longer consultations receive proportionately lower funding.
"Disability isn't a passing illness that can be addressed in a standard 15-minute consultation, but current Medicare rebates incentivise short consultations. Among other care, GPs use longer consultations to help patients understand NDIS documentation, the processes, and their NDIS plan and its recommendations. Especially where a patient lives with a disability, short consultations aren't efficient or appropriate. Quality care that keeps our patients out of hospital can require longer consults, and that efficiency should be incentivised, not disincentivised as it is now.
"Boosting funding for longer consultations by 20% will help GPs to both deliver the quality care our patients deserve and recognise that where a patient needs more time with their GP."
