An online telehealth service suspected to be a scam is linked to failed national GP chain Tristar Medical Group, which collapsed earlier this year owing millions of dollars to doctors and the government.
Concerns have been raised to the ABC over a website called Dr ASAP, which advertises private telehealth services for an out-of-pocket cost of $80.
The site requests patients' personal details along with their Medicare number before booking.
The website states it is a fully private service: "There is no Medicare or other government subsidy rebate".
But some patients across Victoria, including in Ballarat, Horsham, and Eaglehawk, reported that they never received a consultation and their money was lost.
One person posted on Facebook to say she was so concerned about identity theft after paying $80 that she changed her bank card.
"There is nowhere and nobody to contact about my money, they have my personal details and Medicare," she said.
"I couldn't cancel the appointment.
"I've been stressed out of my mind, contacting the bank and the police … all because this website lacks the bare minimum of customer service communication."
The website is owned by Kure Medical Group, a former subsidiary of Tristar.
The phone numbers of former Tristar clinics redirect patients to Dr ASAP.
Tristar's former director now works at Kure Medical, which has two clinics listed in Victoria and one in New South Wales.
Kure Medical has been contacted for comment.
Medicare billing inconsistencies
Leaked billing and medical documents obtained by the ABC show suspected fraud, billing errors, and overservicing by Tristar doctors to Medicare.
Patient records indicate some GPs may have exaggerated consultation times to claim higher Medicare rebates and that they billed for some services without adequate patient documentation.
A string of face-to-face patient visit records shows that one doctor saw 50 patients in under six hours, with a quarter of those involving mental health and long consultations, which must be at least 20 minutes long under Medicare. It meant less than two minutes per patient for the rest of the day.
On a separate day, the GP allegedly charged Medicare for up to 11 hours of face-to-face patient consultations for seven hours worked.
On some days, it allegedly worked out to be 5.8 minutes per patient, despite MBS item numbers showing varying times for consults, between 10 to 20 minutes, up to an hour per patient.
Tristar's business model was based on hiring international GPs on visas and taking up to 50 per cent of the billing income.
Regulators alerted
A Consumer Affairs Victoria spokesperson said Dr ASAP can be reported to Consumer Affairs or the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC).
They said people who had lost money in a scam paid by credit charge could be able to seek a chargeback from their bank or credit card provider.
A chargeback is a reversal of a charge on your credit card and is similar to a refund.
The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra), which is responsible for regulating registered health practitioners in Australia, says it does not have any powers to require payment of refunds.
"If any person has information that a registered medical practitioner is acting dishonestly by charging for a health service they have not provided, they could report that matter to Ahpra," a spokesperson said.
The code of conduct for doctors in Australia says doctors must be "honest and transparent" in their financial dealings with patients.
The ACCC and Victoria Police said scams should be reported to Scamwatch.
The Australian Taxation Office said it could not comment on the tax affairs of any individual or entity due to confidentiality laws.
Watchdogs failed to act
Former Tristar employees and associates have claimed some of Australia's most powerful watchdogs failed to act on their warnings about Tristar, which, at its peak, was one of Australia's largest bulk-billing GP chains.
A former worker said financial mismanagement was rife throughout the company, including one colleague who was mining bitcoin in overseas infrastructure under the company name.
"They didn't have a proper financial system, there was no real way to know how the money was being spent," he said.
"They were flying by the seat of their pants."
An email provided to the ABC showed the former employee tipped off the federal health department about Tristar's possible fraudulent activity back in 2018.
"I also tipped off ASIC via their hotline and there was no feedback. That was years before we got to this stage," he said.
"Why, with all that information being put to numerous parties, was it allowed to continue?"
Doctors, staff pleading for pay
Claims of doctors not being paid by Tristar first surfaced a number of years ago.
All who spoke to the ABC did so anonymously for fear it would jeopardise their job prospects, with many having moved to Australia to be trained through Tristar.
A former GP said she was not paid for six months and was owed close to $60,000 from Tristar.
"We never got paid in full or on time," she said.
"We would send emails, and when we tried to call there was no-one to speak to.
"It was too exhausting, I resigned."
One former receptionist worked for Tristar for 10 years and has been owed superannuation. She has lost hope in seeing the money owed to her.
"Not only was my super not being paid but my salary sacrificing has been kept as well," she said.
"I just assume it's gone and I can't get it because there are so many people that are owed money I doubt they'll be able to get enough back to pay everybody."
In an email chain obtained by the ABC, another former doctor accused the company of withholding her salary.
"[You are] deliberately under-reporting the figures for the amount received from Medicare, even though we have the clinic's report showing the actual amount billed and received," she said.
She said the company ignored her emails and calls.
Administrators McGrath Nicol estimated Tristar was likely insolvent since 2019.
Tristar has approximately 282 unsecured creditors who are collectively owed more than $20 million, including 26 doctors, its latest report shows.
Tristar Property owns a number of commercial and residential properties. One property has been sold and the liquidators are in the process of selling the eight remaining properties.
