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Experts available - Urgent Reform Needed for Heart Checks in Medicare Benefits Schedule: Leading Charity and Cardiologists Unite - hearts4heart
20 Feb 2023 5:00 AM
Leading heart charity and cardiologists unite in call for urgent reform to heart checks in
Medicare Benefits Schedule
This Heart Valve Disease Awareness Week [20 – 26 February], leading charity hearts4heart and cardiologists across the country are urging reform to Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) items for heart checks, saying current settings risk overlooking less well-known heart conditions.
Interim heart health check items (699 and 177) were introduced to the Medicare Benefits Schedule on 1 April 2019, allowing patients to receive a cardiovascular disease assessment from a general practitioner (GP) or another medical practitioner. Currently under review, these items are due to expire in June this year.4
Heart valve disease is a chronic condition that affects more than half a million Australians, and prevalence has increased significantly since 1990,5 leading some researchers to describe the disease as the next cardiac epidemic.6
Australia’s ageing population and under diagnosis are key drivers of this increase, and it is estimated that more than a quarter of a million Australians are unaware they are living with heart valve disease.5
Concerningly, there are restrictions that prevent patients from receiving a heart health assessment if they have received a separate medical assessment service within the previous 12 months.3
While the MBS heart health check was an excellent initiative, hearts4heart CEO and founder Tanya Hall believes there needs to be greater synergy between health assessments to ensure that no patient falls through the gap.
“It is great to see health assessments focused on heart disease prevention, but it is not practical to have a health assessment that focuses on one disease in isolation. There are many different types of heart disease, and focusing primarily on cardiovascular disease overlooks patients at risk of other heart conditions, such as heart valve disease,” Ms Hall said.
As the recommendations from the Strengthening Medicare Taskforce Report are developed and funded, Ms Hall hopes to see changes to Medicare heart health assessments that allow patients to receive more comprehensive care.
“Claiming the MBS heart check should not exclude GP’s from claiming a separate Medicare health assessment service, because patients often have comorbidities,” said Tanya Hall.
“Our healthcare system should be holistic and focus on prevention. Earlier detection and treatment, once heart disease is detected, saves lives, reduces healthcare costs, and improves economic productivity,” said Associate Professor Dion Stubbs, a cardiologist at Alfred Hospital.
“A simple first step to achieving this is to introduce a simple stethoscope check as a requirement in health assessments, because it can be used to check for symptoms of various heart diseases, including heart valve disease, atrial fibrillation, and heart failure.”
There were 130,853 Medicare items processed for item 699 from January to November 2022,1 however, many GPs are not providing the MBS Heart Health Check because auscultation (a stethoscope check) isn’t included, and because it restricts them from claiming other separate Medicare health assessments.2
“GPs also need MBS funding to conduct thorough follow-up appointments with patients, if further tests have been warranted, to talk through their results, including things like cholesterol levels and blood pressure. These factors are important to consider when reviewing the MBS Heart Health Check,” Associate Professor Stubbs said.
To learn more about this issue and support people with any type of heart disease, hearts4heart encourages people to sign its letter to the Federal Health Minister, Hon. Mark Butler MP. This will protect the heart health of Australians into the future: https://stopcardiacservicecuts.good.do/saveourheartchecks/letterheartcheck/
To learn more about heart valve disease and find out more about the campaign, please visit https://hearts4heart.org.au/event/this-heart-valve-disease-awareness-week/
-ENDS-
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Joni Thomes Palin Communications 0421 967 709 |
Kerry Jung Palin Communications 0435 753 618 |
References
- Australian Government. (2023). Medicare item reports http://medicarestatistics.humanservices.gov.au/statistics/mbs_item.jsp
- Hearts4heart. (2022). Medicare benefits schedule heart health assessment review. [data on file].
- Australian Government. (2023). Search the MBS. http://www9.health.gov.au/mbs/search.cfm
- ACSQHC. (2019). Heart health check items added to the MBS. https://www.nps.org.au/news/heart-health-check-items-added-to-the-mbs#r1
- Baker Institute. (2021). Our hidden ageing: time to listen to the heart.
- Global Heart Hub. (2021). Heart Valve Disease: working together to create a better patient journey.
Key Facts:
- Leading heart charity hearts4heart and a group of cardiologists across the country are calling for greater synergy between health assessments to ensure that no patient falls through the gap.
- The current MBS settings for heart checks risk overlooking less well-known heart conditions and exclude patients who have received a separate medical assessment service within the previous 12 months.
- Heart valve disease is a chronic condition that affects more than half a million Australians, and it is estimated that over a quarter of a million Australians are unaware they are living with the disease.
- While the MBS heart health check was an excellent initiative, hearts4heart CEO and founder Tanya Hall believes there needs to be a more comprehensive approach to care.
About us:
About hearts4heart
Supported by Australian and New Zealand cardiologists, hearts4heart is a leading health promotion charity supporting, educating, and advocating for people living with heart disease. For more information visit hearts4heart.org.au
Contact details:
Joni Thomes
Palin Communications
0421 967 709
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