Fees and health funds
A private consultation fee applies, with a Medicare rebate when you have a valid referral. If surgery is proposed, you receive a written estimate of the surgeon’s fee before anything is booked. Informed financial consent is a normal expectation, not an awkward request.
Greenslopes Private Hospital, Brisbane
Watkins Medical Centre, Spring Hill, or telehealth
A current GP or specialist referral is needed
At a glance
A private fee, with a Medicare rebate on a current referral.
A written estimate of the surgeon’s fee before booking.
Hospital, anaesthetist and assistant bill separately.
Gap schemes apply in some circumstances. Ask the rooms which apply to your fund.
Self-insured estimates, DVA, WorkCover with pre-approval, and payment plans.
Consultation fees
The rooms will tell you the consultation fee when you book. What follows is how it works in principle; ask the rooms for the exact amount.
Private specialist consultations are not bulk billed. You pay the consultation fee on the day and Medicare pays a rebate directly to you, usually within a day or two when the claim is lodged electronically at the rooms. The rebate applies only when a current referral is in place: 12 months from a GP, 3 months from another specialist. Without a referral you can still be seen, but no rebate is payable.
Follow-up consultations are charged at a lower rate than the first appointment. Telehealth consultations attract the same Medicare rebate as in-person appointments for patients in eligible regions. Private health insurance does not cover consultations in the rooms; it covers hospital treatment.
Payment
Payment is taken on the day by card. If paying on the day is difficult, tell the rooms before the appointment; they would rather know than have you miss it.
If surgery is proposed
Four separate bills are involved in a private operation. You are entitled to an estimate of each before you decide.
- The surgeonDr Tollesson’s fee is set out in a written estimate before anything is booked. It states the Medicare item numbers, the fee, the Medicare and fund contributions where known, and the amount you would pay.
- The hospitalGreenslopes Private Hospital bills for the admission, the theatre and the bed. With private cover, your fund usually pays this in full less any excess; without cover, the hospital provides a self-insured estimate.
- The anaesthetistThe anaesthetist bills separately and will provide their own estimate on request. The rooms can tell you who the anaesthetist is likely to be.
- The surgical assistantWhere an assistant surgeon is needed for the operation, they bill separately as well. Ask the rooms whether one is expected for your procedure.
Ask for the total out-of-pocket amount across all four, in writing, before you agree to a date. If anything in the estimate is unclear, the rooms will go through it with you.
Watkins Medical Centre, Spring Hill. Consultations in person or by telehealth, Monday to Friday.
Health funds, gap schemes and other cover
What you pay depends on your fund, your level of cover and the procedure. The rooms deal with this daily and will help you find out where you stand.
Private health funds pay a set benefit towards the surgeon’s fee for hospital treatment. Where the fee is above the fund benefit, the difference is the gap. Dr Tollesson participates in gap cover arrangements with some funds for some procedures, which reduces or removes the gap; the rooms will tell you whether a gap scheme applies to your fund and your operation when the estimate is prepared. Check with your fund that your level of cover includes neurosurgery and that any waiting period has passed.
Patients without private cover can be treated as self-insured patients, with estimates from the surgeon and the hospital in advance. Eligible veterans are treated under DVA arrangements. WorkCover and other compensable claims require pre-approval from the insurer before a consultation or surgery can proceed; the rooms will tell you what is needed.
Payment plans are available for the surgeon’s fee. Ask the rooms when the estimate is prepared, not after the operation.
Travel and accommodation
Patients travelling from regional Queensland, including Rockhampton, Gladstone and Mackay, may be eligible for the Patient Travel Subsidy Scheme, which contributes towards travel and accommodation for specialist care not available locally. The scheme is administered through your local hospital and health service; ask the rooms and your GP when you book.
Dr Gert TollessonNeurosurgeon, Brisbane
Ready to talk it through?
A current referral is needed to book. If you do not have one yet, call the rooms on (07) 3870 3708 and they will explain what to ask your GP for.
Request a consultation
Send your details and the rooms will call you to arrange a time. Referrals are triaged as they arrive.
Monday to Friday, 8:30am to 4:30pm. No referral yet? The rooms will explain what to ask your GP for.
Before your appointment
What happens from referral to follow-up, and what it costs.