Summary
Date: February 2019
The Shared Debt Recovery Scheme will commence on 1 July 2019.
The Scheme will enable the government to hold both a practitioner (primary debtor) and another party (secondary debtor) responsible for repayment of compliance debts associated with incorrect Medicare billing.
The RACGP provided a submission in response to the Department of Health’s consultation on the Shared Debt Recovery Scheme in February this year.
The RACGP supported the intent of the Shared Debt Recovery Scheme as a mechanism to enable the Commonwealth to recoup debt from practices where there is clear evidence that they have influenced, or are responsible for, incorrect Medicare billing. However, the RACGP also recommended that the introduction of the Scheme be delayed to address a range of potential issues that are identified in the submission.