6 January 2022
The Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP) has welcomed the Australian Government’s decision to review recently announced telehealth arrangements to ensure patient access to specialist care.
RACP President, Professor John Wilson AM, described the decision as sensible, especially given the current COVID 19 crisis.
“Last month, the Commonwealth introduced an auditing threshold to phone consultations which meant that physicians and paediatricians could be referred to a standards committee. That was likely to limit access to specialist care, Professor Wilson said.
“The RACP has strongly argued against that auditing threshold because some priority populations experience difficulty accessing video appointments. This includes some Australians living in regional and remote areas, elderly Australians, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, newly arrived migrants and refugees and many others.
“The RACP is pleased that the Commonwealth has heeded our concerns and delayed making them permanent until July 2022. It is essential that the community is able to safely access health care, given the current rapid rise in COVID 19 cases in Australia.
“A flexible telehealth system, including the use of telephone-based appointments, has played an important role in ensuring Australians can continue to access health and medical consultations safely and equitably during the COVID-19 pandemic, including the current highly virulent Omicron variant.
“We remain concerned about the impact of other recent changes to telehealth arrangements, in particular limitations on the use of the phone for specialist consultations. As with the auditing rule, these are likely to reduce the access to specialist care for priority populations. We ask that the Government review and reconsider these changes.
The RACP acknowledges Minister for Health Greg Hunt’s ongoing commitment to telehealth and we look forward to working with him to ensure our telehealth system remains equitable and effective for all Australians.
“We continue to advocate for funding for videoconferencing technology packages for priority populations to promote equitable access to telehealth.”