In a response to the AMA, the Department of Health have confirmed that GPs will not be prevented from accessing MBS item 30202.
The recent recommendations of the MBS Taskforce were misreported on the MBS Taskforce’s website. The website incorrectly reported a change to MBS item 30202, which would have seen GPs, prevented from claiming the cryotherapy item for removing malignant neoplasms.
It was recommended that the descriptor for MBS item 30202 be amended to replace “specialist” with “Australian Medical Council (AMC) recognised dermatologist”. Recommendations made to the MBS Taskforce indicated that the Department of Health should monitor high-volume users.
This was to ensure that providers were requesting the appropriate pathology tests to confirm malignancy. At no point was it recommended that GPs be excluded from claiming the item.