The Grattan Institute has published a report by Stephen Duckett, Blood Money: Paying for Pathology Services which calls for changes in the way the government pays for pathology testing.
The report reveals that taxpayers spend over $2.5 billion per year on pathology services via Medicare. Providers have introduced modern technologies that allow them to run additional tests at low costs but the government pays full price for each test. Efficiencies should be passed on and patients should be protected from out-of-pocket charges, Duckett asserts. He also suggests that tendering for services should be part of more commercial purchasing arrangements with pathology providers.
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