GP visits will be means-tested in Nat’s health policy

People could be charged for GP visits depending on their ability to pay under a National government.

National Party spokesperson for Health Shane Reti yesterday announced its health policy going into the general election, detailing how it would spend $788 million on health over four years.

It outlined potential changes to the way GPs were funded, pledging to explore co-payment mechanisms based on a patient’s ability to pay.

GPs charge patients a copayment fee which is capped by the Government. Practices are also funded by howmany people they have on their roll, not the amount of time it sees patients.

Under National’s plans, GP visits would remain free for those who qualify now, including all children under 13. But othersmay be charged more, or less, depending on their ability to pay.

Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners president Dr SamMurton said there should be a review of the way GPs were funded.

‘‘We think it should be a wholehearted review, not just tweaking bits and pieces,’’ she said.

GPs get the same amount of money to care for someone with high needs as they do with low needs, and a variation in payments was ‘‘something we should continue to think about and consider’’.

‘‘GPs are expecting change,’’ she said.

A National Party spokesman did not clarify what the threshold for different charges would be but said the policy followed recommendations made in 2015 to then-Health Minister Health Minister Jonathan Coleman from the Primary Care Working Group.

It found all practices should have the flexibility to charge nonhigh needs patients a fee commensurate with service.

Other notable policies included a new border agency, a $50ma year funding boost for cancer drugs, and a new medical school.

Pharmac would also get an extra $5m a year to buy treatments for rare disorders.

National pledged to address the healthcare postcode lottery, where access to care can differ depending on where you live, by introducing a standard treatment level across the country.

Part of this work included rolling out the delayed bowel screening programme to the remaining 10 DHBs in their first year in power.

It promised to speed-up elective surgery waits and ensure no-one waitsmore than four months for elective surgery with ‘‘punitive consequence’’ for DHBs which missed the target, Reti said.

It would need to then find another DHB to do the surgery, or contract a private hospital.

Part of its focus on cancer included establishing a National Cancer Agency, independent of the Ministry of Health, to ensure access to treatment, setting a new target to see 95 per cent of highrisk cancer patients within two weeks.