Submission

AMA Submission - MBS Review Clinical Committee Report on Pathology and Diagnostic Medicine

The AMA's submission on the MBS Review Diagnostic Medicine Clinical Committee (DMCC) report urged the MBS Taskforce to implement a non-mandatory CDS system and/or allow clinicians to continue to exercise their clinical judgement in relation to the particular circumstances of the patient they are treating.

The AMA also expressed concern that the the Royal College of Pathologists of Australasia (RCPA) and Australian Pathology rejected the majority of the DMCC report recommendations.

The pathology sector is high volume and low margin, with significant cross subsidisation across pathology services. Any changes or dis-investment in one area of pathology could destabilise other parts of the system. In its submission, the AMA suggested that the ideal mechanism to ensure implementation issues are robustly discussed and addressed; planned and monitored, is through the establishment of an implementation group of representatives from public and private pathology services and Government.

Furthermore, it would be vital for the implementation group to undertake financial and economic modelling of the recommendations, at the practice level (to remove effects of coning), before implementation to identify any potential unintended consequences. 

 

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