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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Natasha May

Australia’s medical specialist fees are ‘out of control’, Mark Butler says. Here’s why, and how to fix it

Mark Butler Australia Luke Beck Medicare AMA Danielle McMullen
Hands with one of a doctor holding a clipboard
The government will publish individual specialist fees online as part of a move to try and drive down costs, but experts recommend a broader suite of measures including targeted training and tying funding to targets. Photograph: Xv Studio/Getty Images/500px

The health minister, Mark Butler, says he is “determined” to make specialist fees his government’s second-term priority.

After a first term prioritising general practice bulk-billing rates, Butler told ABC Melbourne he will be focusing on the fees charged by non-GP specialists “because they are, frankly - I don’t use these words lightly - in some areas getting out of control”.

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