Consultation fees
All the practitioners working at ENT North determine the fees they charge for consultations and procedures.
One of the advantages of the services provided by ENT Specialists is that procedures can be done in the consulting or procedure room and often as a part of your initial visit. This helps the surgeons fully understand your particular issues and in some instances provide immediate treatment. In the past, these services could only be provided in hospital, which added a lot of time, cost and delay in treatment.
Until you are assessed by the surgeon during your first consultation it is difficult to predict which procedures will be required.
A current referral from either your GP or other specialist is required to enable you to claim the Medicare rebate. After 12 months a new referral is required. It is your responsibility to ensure your referral is valid. It is against the law to back date a referral.*
We provide the following information about the fees and ‘potential’ fees associated with your appointment.
Pensioner discount
We understand that the costs of health care for our pensioners is significant. In recognition of this we offer consultations for a reduced fee and any procedures required will be charged at the Medicare rebate, which means for the procedures there will be no out of pocket cost to you. This discount applies to those people who hold and can present to our reception staff a full aged care pension card.
Fees Table – The Fees are updated once a year on the 1st November
(Please note all fees are to be paid in full on the day of consultation)
If there is more than 1 procedure performed on the same day the 2nd fee is charged at 50% of the full fee.
To help you understand in more detail how our fees work with the Medicare rebate and the likely out of pocket cost to you, we have put together a summary of the possible combination of fees.
If you would like more information regarding your fees prior to attending your appointment, please don’t hesitate to contact us via email or phone.
Surgical fees
If surgery has been recommended as a part of your treatment there are costs involved beyond those charged by our surgeons.
It is important you understand that the total cost for your hospital admission is a combination of the cost covered by your health insurance policy, plus a possible out-of-pocket fee from the hospital, your surgeon, your anaesthetist, and sometimes fees for blood tests, imaging and pharmacy items.
ENT North is only able to set the fee for your surgery, not those of the other services.
The amount paid by each of the health fund will vary depending on your level of cover and agreement with the insurer. This is not something ENT North has any influence over, so any questions related to your insurance cover should be directed to them. The surgery quote provided to you will be important when clarifying this information with your health insurer.
There are some funds that the surgeons do not have agreements with. If this is the case, you will receive the account and will claim through your health fund direct. Our staff will explain this when they explain the surgery quote to you.
A fully itemised quote for your surgery is provided to everyone at the time your surgeon recommends an operation. This includes the ‘item numbers’ Medicare uses to guide your health fund’s cover.
The anaesthetist** is an important part of the surgical team (responsible for keeping you asleep and safe during your operation) and at ENT North we choose carefully who we work with to ensure the best possible care for you during surgery. You will meet them just before you have your operation.
You will be given the contact details for the anaesthetist. Please contact them to request a quote for your procedure (they will need to know the item numbers listed on your quote).
Self-funded option
If you are uninsured it is an option to ‘self-fund’ your surgery. If you would like to know more about this option please discuss with our reception staff who can explain in detail the costs and options available to you.
Public Hospital option
All our patients, regardless of insurance status, have the right to request care through the public hospital system, at no out of pocket fee. Please see our Patient Information Sheet on ‘Having Surgery in the Public System’ for the pros and cons of this decision.
It is important to us that you fully understand the costs associated with your surgery. So if in doubt, please don’t hesitate to ask.
* Because the referral must be received before the service is provided, any back dating by the referring practitioner would be a false statement capable of being used to claim a benefit. Health Insurance Regulation 1975
** A specialist anaesthetist is a fully qualified medical doctor who, after obtaining their medical degree, has spent at least two years working in the hospital system before completing a further five years of training in anaesthesia.
