MyMedicare is a new voluntary patient registration model. It aims to strengthen the relationship between patients, their general practice, general practitioner, and primary care teams. It zeroes in on a crucial aspect of our healthcare system, continuity of care – particularly in the face of an ageing population and the increasing prevalence of chronic diseases.
MyMedicare is only at the early stages of development, so it will take some time for practices to get all the answers you need.
According to the Federal Department of Health and Aged Care:
MyMedicare patients will have access to:
- greater continuity of care with their registered practice, improving health outcomes.
- longer MBS-funded telephone calls (Levels C and D) with their usual general practice.
- triple bulk billing incentive for longer MBS telehealth consultations (Levels C, D and E) for children under 16, pensioners, and concession card holders.
MyMedicare practices will have access to:
- more information about regular patients, making it easier to tailor services to fit the patient’s needs.
- the new longer telehealth items linked to MyMedicare outlined above.
- the General Practice in Aged Care Incentive from 1 August 2024, which will support regular health assessments, care plans and regular GP visits for people in residential aged care homes.
- new blended funding payments to support better care in the community for people with complex, chronic disease who frequently attend hospitals. These arrangements will roll out progressively across the country over three years from FY2024–25.
- Chronic Disease Management items linked to a patient’s registration in MyMedicare from November 2024, to support continuity of care for people with chronic and complex conditions. Patients who are not registered in MyMedicare will still be able to receive Chronic Disease Management items from their usual GP.
Registration
General practices can now begin the MyMedicare registration process and patients can register for MyMedicare from 1 October 2023.
For further information about MyMedicare including eligibility, how to register and frequently asked questions visit here.
So, what can practices do now to get ready for MyMedicare?
Leading Practice Intelligence Platform provider Cubiko has shared their insights about what you can do now to prepare for MyMedicare.
- Know your patients. The first step to preparing for MyMedicare effectively is understanding your patient base.
- Strengthen patient-practitioner relationships. MyMedicare places a premium on the relationship between patients and healthcare providers. It rewards proactive and preventive care, encourages extended telehealth consultations, and incentivises GPs to register frequent hospital attendees.
- Engage patients in care with GP Management Plans (GPMP). A GPMP and Chronic Disease Management (CDM) is a great way to provide continuous patient care and be incentivised appropriately by Medicare for those services.
- Champion 10997 & 10987s across your practice. Ensure that the wider care team is involved with the health initiatives you’ve put in place.
- Provide proactive Care for Patient Health Assessments. Under MyMedicare, proactive care has become more important than ever. Health assessments for specific age groups, like those aged between 40-49 years for diabetes risk or 45 – 49 health assessments, are opportunities to provide proactive health care.
For further detail including how Cubiko can help your practice visit https://www.cubiko.com.au/blog/what-you-can-do-now-to-prepare-for-mymedicare/
