Do I really need to expand beyond the title?
I suppose I should give it some context.
In the past few months I have started a new job, been promoted, and subsequently discovered the bane of all things enjoyable: Medicare. In two days I spent over 10 hours on the phone to Medicare. Admittedly I was being paid for those 10 hours, but still, that is ridiculous. Even more ridiculous is Medicare's over the top stance on privacy. Yes, I understand if you can't give me someone's home address, but when I'm trying to track down missing payments it gets a teensy bit frustrating. Especially when the dialogue consists mainly of:
Random Medicare Demon 1: Well, that cheque has been presented.
Me: Ok, when?
RMD 1: I can't tell you that.
Me: ...can you tell me what bank account?
RMD 1: No.
Me: So despite the fact that my practice has every legal entitlement to that cheque, you can't tell me anything apart from it's been banked?
RMD 1: Yes.
Me: What can I do?
RMD 1: Pray?
...10 minutes later...
Me: Hi, I called up just before trying to track a cheque, when I called the relevant client and they never received it. *gives client details*
RMD 2: Oh, that was never issued.
Me: Excuse me?
RMD 2: We have no record of any claim being lodged for that date.
Me: ...
...following up a different cheque...
RMD 3: Oh, that cheque has gone stale.
Me: Excuse me?
RMD 3: Well if a cheque isn't presented after 15 months, it just goes "stale" and the whole claim is cancelled.
Me: I thought if cheques weren't presented after a few months they payment was EFT'd to the applicable bank account?
RMD 3: Oh, that's only for GPs. I don't know why they don't do it for specialists.
Me: So how do we get the payment?
RMD 3: Oh, you need to resubmit the claim. Then we'll send out another cheque.
Me: After 15 months, we didn't get the last one. What do you think our chances are this time?
RMD 3: Oh.
I guess I wouldn't have such an issue if things weren't so... confusing? I mean, if a system is in place where cheques that don't reach their intended GPs within 3 months are automatically banked, why can't the same be done for specialists? More importantly, why can't Medicare tell a provider (or representative of) where the money they are entitled to has gone? One RMD told me the only way to track a cheque was to go back to the date of the appointment and start looking through bank statements.
Recently I called up because of an issue with a client's Mental Health Care Plan. long story short, if you have a MHCP, you get a sizeable rebate from Medicare (so they're understandably quite desirable). The RMD I spoke to said there was an issue with the referring GPs provider number, but couldn't say what. I called the GP clinic and confirmed the provider number. The receptionist there then called Medicare, called me back and said everything should be ok. I called Medicare again, but no, there was an issue. After an hour of playing phone tag, it was finally worked out that the GP had billed a 2712 instead of a 2702. The difference? A 2712 is the MHCP billed by GPs who have had up-to-date vocational training in mental health. A 2702 is for those who haven't. The GP had up-to-date training, Medicare just didn't have a record of it.
I made a small poem:
M is for morons, manning the lines.
E is for exasperating, all of the time.
D is for death, what I wish would come.
I is for ingrates (that word's just fun).
C is for c*nts, all RMDs are.
A is for anger, this blogpost's star.
R is for raqequit, an option I wish was there.
E is for everlasting, any call to Medicare.
Nyargh.
/rant.
~Coops
