Important Patient Notice
Changes to Practice Fees – from 12/08/2024
Dear Patient,
Pittwater Family Practice is committed to maintaining the highest level of medical care possible. We have the most competent staff, tenant doctors and we treat every patient as an important individual.
We are charging less than other practices in the area and the cost of running a practice continues to rise but the Medicare rebate remains far below the cost of providing quality care.
* We continue to provide bulk billing to our Veterans and all children 12 years and under.
* We are unfortunately unable to offer a bulk billing service on Saturdays. Saturday appointments attract a slightly higher fee.
If you have extenuating circumstances, please discuss these with your treating doctor.
We also charge a surcharge on our eftpos machines at time of purchase
Mastercard credit 1.82% – Mastercard Debit 1.24%
Visa credit 1.81% – Visa Debit 1.21%
Eftpos card 0.69%
*Unfortunately we don’t accept American Express or Diners – We still accept Cash or Cheque as a form of payment
* Cancellation Policy – DISCLAIMER Please provide us with 2 hours notice if you wish to cancel or change your appointment with your doctor. Any cancellations or changes to appointments within 2 hours may attract a cancellation fee of $55.00 for missed standard appointment and $85.00 for a missed long appointment time. Please call reception with any concerns. New patient appointments cancelled within 2 hours or patient does not show ,the fee is the full amount of $165. Cancellations on on a Saturday incur a higher fee.
We have had to implement these cancellations charges as we have had an increase of “no shows” by patients. If a patient doesn’t show the doctors doesn’t’ get paid for that time as they are all contractors. Thank you in advance for your understanding and your co-operation.
Pittwater Family Practice – Updated 16th July 2024
| Service | Price | Gap | Rebate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday to Friday | $100.00 | $57.15 | $42.85 |
| Pensioners | $70.00 | $27.15 | $42.85 |
| Saturdays | $110.00 | $67.15 | $42.85 |
| Saturday long Consultation (20-40 min) | $175.00 | $92.10 | $82.90 |
| Pensioner Saturday Rate | $75 | $32.15 | $42.85 |
| Long consultations (20-40 minutes) | $165.00 | $82.10 | $82.90 |
| Pensioner Long Consultation | $115.00 | $32.10 | $82.90 |
| Home Visits (less than 20 minutes) | $175.00 | $102.15 | $72.85 |
| Telehealth ( phone) | $85.00 | $42.15 | $42.85 |
| Skin Check | $120 | $77.15 | $42.85 |
| Telehealth ( phone) No rebate applicable | $85.00 | Nil | Nil |
| Hot Doc online referral & script requests | $30 | Nil | Nil |
| Cancellation fee less than 2 hours notice for a standard appointment | $55 | Nil | Nil |
| Cancellation fee less than 2 hours notice for a standard appointment on a Saturday | $65 | Nil | Nil |
| Cancellation fee less than 2 hours notice for a long appointment | $85 | Nil | Nil |
| Cancellation fee less than 2 hours notice for a long appointment on a Saturday | $95 | Nil | Nil |
| Cancellation fee less than 2 hours notice for a New Patient appointment | $165 | Nil | Nil |
| Cancellation fee less than 2 hours notice for a New Patient appointment on a Saturday | $175 | Nil | Nil |
Medical billing is a complex matter and subject to change. We are a private billing medical practice made up of independent tenant doctors with standard appointment times of 15 minutes. The usual consultation fee is $100.00, with a Medicare refund of $42.85 deposited directly back into your account on the day of the consultation.
On Saturdays, we do not routinely offer bulk billing but this may be waived at the discretion of the tenant doctor. Saturdays incurs a increase fee of $110.
For appointments over 20 minutes the fee is $165.00 with a Medicare refund of $82.90
Discounts may apply by the treating tenant doctor’s discretion at the time of treatment. Please refer to each tenant doctor for there fees.
We bulk bill children aged 12 and under, as well as Veteran’s Affairs cardholders. There is a significant discount for pensioners and Health Care Card Holders with a fee of $70.00 resulting in a gap “out of pocket” expense of only $27.15 after your Medicare refund.
Please note that certain procedures, dressing, tests and vaccinations may incur additional fees.
All skin checks have a fee of $120 with a rebate of $42.85 meaning you will be out of pocket $77.15 All procedures & excisions incur an additional fee but will be discussed beforehand by the doctor.
If you have difficulties in paying your bill, please talk to reception. Our tenant doctors are sensitive to situations of financial hardship and are willing to assist where possible.
Medicare Rebates
A complete list of our fees and Medicare rebates are available at reception. We are able to lodge your Medicare claim electronically when you pay your bill. Please ensure that Medicare has your correct bank account details on file, as they no longer send cheques. You can contact Medicare on 132 011, or log on to to view your account here.
More Info on Medicare Rebates
In recent years, the Medicare rebate has fallen a long way behind the CPI (Consumer Price Index), whilst the cost of providing quality health care has risen. We have endeavored to absorb these costs for as long as possible, however, to maintain our high quality of service we have had to introduce small fees. For further information, head here.
If you find the Medicare rebate to be inadequate, we strongly encourage you to discuss this with your Federal Member of Parliament.
