ACC Renumeration for Home Visits As discussed at the Primary Healthcare Sector Engagement Group meeting today; there are three codes General Practice should be invoicing ACC against when a home visit takes place. These are: 1. The consultation rate that would otherwise apply if the patient visited the GP’s practice 2. The travelling fee set at 73c per km 3. An hourly rate set at $44.11 excl. GST (expected to cover the costs of the clinician’s time travelling to and from and the patient’s location). A review of ACC’s billing information shows: • When ACC’s travelling rates are billed (2 + 3) above, the consultation rate (1) is rarely billed at the same time (i.e. the consultation rate is only billed 20% of the time within the same month as the travelling rates). • Note: Even looking at these being billed within the same month is generous since we would expect them to be billed on the same day. Happy to support communications with the sector to help clarify this. Thought it would be useful to get some of this background to you in the first instance noting your meeting with PHOs later this evening. For reference I have attached the latest version of the Cost of Treatment Regulations, and pasted the relevant provisions below. 13 Medical practitioners’ costs (1) This regulation applies if— (a) a claimant visits or is visited by a medical practitioner who is not a specialist (2) For each visit the Corporation is liable to pay— (a) whichever of the following applies: (i) $56.94, if the claimant is under 14 years old when the visit takes place: (ii)$32.02, if the claimant is 14 years old or over when the visit takes place and is not the holder of a community services card or the dependent child of a holder: (iii)$53.33, if the claimant is 14 years old or over when the visit takes place and is the holder of a community services card: (iv)$58.54, if the claimant is 14 years old or over but under 18 years old when the visit takes place and is the dependent child of a holder of a community services card; plus … (5) If the practitioner travels to the claimant and the claimant receives emergency treatment, the Corporation is liable to pay— (a) a travelling fee at the rate of 73 cents per kilometre (if in the same circumstances the cost of travel would be payable under the New Zealand Public Health and Disability Act 2000); plus (b) $44.11 an hour if the Corporation is liable to pay a travelling fee under paragraph (a); plus (c) the amount payable under subclause (2). Cheers, Jeremy
Jeremy Ly, Portfolio Manager, ACC Tel / Mobile (021) 849 403 / Ext: 45667 ACC cares about the environment – please don’t print this email unless it is really necessary. Thank you.