Statement from the Urological Society of Australia and New Zealand on Surgical fees

MEDIA RELEASE | 29 May 2018

The Urological Society of Australia and New Zealand does not condone surgical fees that cause financial hardships for patients and strongly condemns price gouging activities.

It is extremely disappointing that a small group of individual specialists behaving in an egregious way harm the reputation of the specialty as a whole and by association, that of their colleagues.

There is no evidence suggesting higher fees equate to better results.

As a Society we cannot legally control fees charged by our members.

However, we strongly support fee transparency and the Government’s Ministerial Advisory subCommittee on Out of Pocket Costs on which the Urological Society is represented.

While reports suggest a small number of individuals are charging excessive fees, the remaining 90 – 95% of urologists are conducting themselves appropriately and we support their right to charge a reasonable gap fee.

The reasons gaps exist are multifactorial and not only include surgical fees, but technological advances not covered by health funds; government freezing of rebates while costs of running a practise increase; insurance costs, and ongoing training and education costs.

The Urological Society’s position statement on fees is consistent with that of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons.

We advise patients to discuss their fees with their surgeon; obtain a second opinion or seek free public care.

The Society educates urologists in Australia to a very high standard, and as such patients should feel free to seek additional opinions from other well-qualified urologists capable of offering comparable care.

Read the Urological Society of Australia and New Zealand’s Position Statement on Fees.

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