Abstract
Despite introducing the highly skilled Nurse Practitioner into Australia to increase patient access to health care, the Australian Department of Health uses taxpayer dollars to provide subsidies for patients seeking care from medical practitioners, creating an anti-competitive market. After unsuccessfully working with the Department of Health to broaden access to the Medical Benefits Schedule, Nurse Practitioner peak groups and individual clinicians are now investigating alternative resolutions. While the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and the Commonwealth Ombudsman are avenues being explored, the tort law of misfeasance may apply to those in public office who knowingly foster this anti-competitive culture.
Highlights
Editorial note: The authors of this paper have asked to have their names withheld
Private patients choosing to see an Nurse Practitioners (NPs) for their health care can claim limited Medicare subsidies for services and medicines arising from NP-directed care in primary health care settings
The Medical Benefits Schedule (MBS) and Pharmaceutical Benefits Schedule (PBS) reforms have truly been transformative for the Australian NP role
Summary
Editorial note: The authors of this paper have asked to have their names withheld. The JPN editorial team do not usually agree to such requests, but we have made an exception in this case. There is significant animosity between Nurse Practitioners and the federal health bureaucracy. The authors fear potential reprisals for calling out what they see as prejudicial behaviour against their community
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