KEY POINTS:
More children under six are expected to receive free visits to the doctor from next year, following a cash boost from Government coffers.
Health Minister Pete Hodgson announced yesterday funding of $8.25 million for cheaper health care for under-sixes.
"We don't want any parent to think twice about taking their young child to the doctor because of how much it costs," said Mr Hodgson.
The money will be rolled out from January 1 and will be made available each year to practices that commit to providing free care for the under-sixes. Currently, 61 per cent of general practices do not charge for children under six, but fees can vary across the country. The national average for a GP visit for children under six is $5.
A random poll of practices in different parts of the country found fees ranged from nil to $74, depending on whether the patient was enrolled in the practice or not.
Mr Hodgson hoped some practices charging low fees will see the funding as an incentive to make visits for under sixes free.
The scheme is voluntary. To receive extra funding, practices commit each quarter to providing free standard consultations to children under six. They can still charge for after-hours consultations.
The Health Ministry expects some practices will not take part but believes a high proportion will.
A subsidy of $32.50, widely known as the "free under-sixes policy" had been introduced in 1997, but it did not mean all practices charged zero fees.
They retained the right to set their own fees, although a high proportion did provide free standard consultations.
The current CPI-adjusted funding of $39.70 per visit will increase by $6 for GPs who commit to providing free care for under sixes.
Medical Association GP council chairman Dr Mark Peterson said he was concerned that practices that did sign up could lose the right to set their own fees. "I expect some practices will see a barb in this and may elect not to."
Dr Peterson said government funding was currently adjusted according to the Consumer Price Index, when the Labour Cost Index was a more accurate indicator of the costs GPs incur.
Over time, costs could grow potentially faster than the subsidy, and practices that extricated themselves from the agreement would stand to lose the additional subsidy.
Patients would ultimately end up penalised, said Dr Peterson. But he expected most practices to sign up. "We do it at a potential cost to ourselves."
The initiative, a result of Labour's agreement with New Zealand First, comes on top of the Government's $2.2 billion investment in primary healthcare, which has seen the cost of seeing a doctor halved.
Yesterday's announcement precludes GP practices that participate in the Very Low Cost Access Scheme (VLCAS), which already provides free care for children under six.
Mr Hodgson also announced yesterday that practices in the VLCAS, which serves more than 900,000 people, would get an additional $6 million.
