News and updates

Correction of inaccurate information disseminated by AAPi

Posted 8 November 2011
 
The Association of Australian Psychologists inc (AAPi) continues to publicise misleading and inaccurate information through its emailed newsletters. The latest newsletters contain inaccurate information that requires correction, as the newsletters are widely circulated to psychologists who are APS members and it is vital to ensure members have access to correct information.

1. Changes to the Better Access session allowance
   The AAPi has incorrectly claimed that “psychology services under the Better Access scheme are to be reduced to 6 consults per year, with a maximum of 10 under special circumstances”. This is incorrect, as people do not have to demonstrate special circumstances in order to receive the maximum of 10 services. Following the first six sessions, the additional four sessions can be accessed after review by the referring medical practitioner. Further information on the changes to the Better Access session allowance, and how these affect existing clients, can be found from this link.
2. APS position on the two-tier Medicare rebate system
   The AAPi continues to disseminate inaccurate information in relation to the origins of the establishment of the two-tier Medicare system. In August this year the APS provided members with a briefing paper on the two-tier Medicare rebate structure, which includes some historical facts about the APS role in the establishment of the system.  This information can be found on page 2 of the document.
   
   In its latest newsletter, the AAPi presents false information regarding the recent APS research on the impact of the cuts to the number of sessions of psychological care under the Better Access initiative. The APS research did not collect data on the type of psychology provider as it was focused on the impact of the cuts on the clients of psychologists and on ascertaining the nature and severity of their mental health disorders. It is therefore entirely false to say the APS has research data comparing the outcomes of clients seen by the different types of psychology providers and is withholding it.
3. Nature of the APS relationship with the Psychology Board of Australia
   The AAPi has persisted in publishing misleading and inaccurate claims that there is an “alliance” between the Psychology Board of Australia and the APS. The APS does not have an alliance nor any formal relationship with the Psychology Board of Australia. As with all other competent professional organisations representing health professionals in Australia at the present time, the APS does its best to understand and work with the requirements of the Psychology Board and the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA), and to do so requires ongoing communication and cooperation with these bodies. The APS has challenged the Psychology Board’s policies and the manner in which the national registration scheme has been implemented when this has been appropriate, and will continue to advocate for fair conditions for psychology practitioners under the scheme. Notwithstanding this, the APS attempts to negotiate requirements for the profession and protection of the public to ensure the requirements are realistic and practical to implement, and in this way works alongside the Psychology Board.

Release of report from the Senate Inquiry into Commonwealth funding and administration of mental health services

2 November 2011

The Senate Committee conducting the Inquiry delivered its final report on 1 November 2011. Overall the recommendations resulting from the Inquiry are very positive. The Better Access initiative was recognised as being a highly successful and effective program, which is something the APS has been promoting since its inception.

The key recommendations urge the Government to delay the introduction of the cuts to Better Access until adequate alternative programs are available, acknowledging that a large number of people will otherwise miss out on effective services. This supports the APS position. Of concern, last week the APS learnt from the Government that the funding allocated for the planned expansion of ATAPS to support people with severe mental illness has been redirected to Care Coordination services without any psychological treatment component, thereby removing this potential treatment alternative for people affected by the cuts.

The Senate Inquiry recommended that the Government consider putting in place an interim program under Medicare that would allow access to six additional sessions for Better Access consumers who meet tightened criteria based on the severity of their condition. The APS will argue, in the light of the change of funding to ATAPS alluded to above, that this recommendation should be considered as a long-term arrangement rather than an interim option.  

In relation to the two-tiered Medicare rebate system, there was no recommendation to change the current arrangement. However, the recommendation was for the new Mental Health Commission to undertake ongoing monitoring of the two-tier rebate to ensure access to appropriate practitioners and workforce balance across the mental health sector.  

The APS has continued its advocacy through the media and negotiations with the Federal Government since the release of the Senate Inquiry report. The APS has highlighted the dramatic impact of the cuts on many thousands of Australians with moderate to severe mental health problems who will be denied effective treatment under the changed arrangements.

A summary of the recommendations from the Inquiry which includes a link to the full report can be found here.

The APS media release following the delivery of the Senate Inquiry report can be found here.

Important changes to the Medicare Benefits Schedule from 1 November 2011

1 November 2011

There are a number of changes to the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) that are applicable from 1 November 2011 and affect psychologists providing services under Medicare.

Reduced annual session allowance under the Better Access initiative

As previously advised, from 1 November 2011 the number of services a person can receive from a psychologist per calendar year has been capped at 10 sessions and the provision for additional sessions under exceptional circumstances has been removed. These changes apply to clients who are already receiving treatment as well as new clients (see link below for more details). The APS has received some advice from the Department of Health and Ageing in response to queries about the arrangements for rolling over sessions into the new year and further advice is pending. Details of the session allowance changes can be found here.

ATAPS is not an alternative source of treatment for Better Access clients

The APS last week received clarification from the Department of Health and Ageing that services provided under the Access to Allied Psychological Services (ATAPS) program should NOT be used in addition to services provided under the Better Access initiative. This is a change to previous arrangements. Therefore, ATAPS is not an alternative source of treatment for clients who have reached their 10 session limit and clients should not be referred to that program if they have already received services under Better Access in that calendar year. The APS has conveyed its serious concerns about the inadequate arrangements for alternative sources of treatment for clients affected by the Better Access session cuts.

New MBS item numbers for GP Mental Health Treatment Plans under the Better Access initiative

From 1 November 2011, new items for GPs to develop a GP Mental Health Treatment Plan (2700, 2701, 2715 and 2717) have been introduced to replace the current items 2702 and 2710. Therefore, where psychologists are providing services to a client referred by a GP, the client must have had one of these MBS item numbers (2700, 2701, 2715 or 2717) processed indicating that he or she is being managed under a GP Mental Health Treatment Plan.

Please note that although there are changes to the session allowance for psychological services provided under Better Access, there is no change to the psychologists’ Medicare item numbers.

Annual increase in Medicare schedule fees and rebates

As of 1 November 2011, the schedule fees and rebates for services provided under the Medicare Benefits Scheme (MBS) have been increased in line with indexation. A table of the indexed fees and rebates for all Medicare items that can be provided by psychologists under the MBS has been prepared and can be downloaded here .

Better Access funding cuts – members should plan for changes to the Better Access session allowance

10 October 2011

Although the APS will continue its advocacy and negotiations with the Federal Government over the reduction in the number of allowable sessions of psychological treatment under the Better Access initiative, members need to be aware that these changes are due to be implemented from 1 November this year and will affect existing clients. Members should therefore plan for these changes and ensure their clients are informed. Members will be informed of any developments or changes to arrangements through APS Matters and these web pages.

Read details of the Better Access changes from 1 November 2011

Results of APS Board of Directors election 2011

6 October 2011

An election for the President-Elect and two General Director positions on the APS Board of Directors was held by postal ballot and electronic voting using the preferential voting method, and the result was declared at the Society’s AGM on 6 October 2011.

The successful candidate for the President-Elect is Mr Tim Hannan FAPS. Following a 12-month term as President-Elect, Tim Hannan will assume the office of President of the Society from the AGM in 2012 for a term of two years.

As Tim is currently a Director on the APS Board, his election to President-Elect has produced a third vacancy for a General Director on the Board. Therefore three successful candidates have been elected to General Director positions on the Board and they are Associate Professor Erica Frydenberg FAPS, Professor Mike Kyrios FAPS and Mr Alan Plumb FAPS. Erica Frydenberg and Mike Kyrios will each serve a three-year term and Alan Plumb’s term will be for two years (to fill the vacancy caused by Tim Hannan’s election to President-Elect).

We congratulate each of these members of the Society on their election and look forward to their contribution to the APS Board – as the ultimate decision making and policy setting body of the Society – in the coming years.  

At the first meeting of the new APS Board of Directors following the AGM, two additional Directors were appointed to provide greater Board diversity. The two appointed Directors are Ms Sue Carter and Dr Nick Reynolds MAPS, whose terms as Directors will end at the conclusion of the 2012 AGM. 

The full composition of the new 18th APS Board of Directors is:

• President
  Professor Simon Crowe FAPS
• President-Elect
  Mr Tim Hannan FAPS
• Executive Director
  Professor Lyn Littlefield FAPS
• General Directors
  Ms Sue Carter
  Associate Professor Erica Frydenberg FAPS
  Emeritus Professor Gina Geffen FAPS
  Professor Mike Kyrios FAPS
  Mr Alan Plumb FAPS
  Dr Nick Reynolds MAPS
  Dr Bob Rich MAPS
  Emeritus Professor Trang Thomas FAPS

Email scam alert

25 August 2011

We draw your attention to a recent elaborate email scam targeting psychologists. There may well be variations of this type of scam.

A person from overseas (perhaps purporting to be from an off-shore company) contacts a psychologist by email and informs him or her that a group of company workers will be coming to Australia to work for an extended period of time or as part of their leave arrangements. They will want to make “regular mental health check-up appointments” with the psychologist.

The email further states that some members of the group will need “an interpreter” which the contact will organize. After negotiating the level and type of services required in further emails to the psychologist, the scamster undertakes to pay a sizeable deposit to the psychologist but is only able to do this by credit card. The psychologist is also told that the interpreter is not able to be paid by credit card. Instead, the scamster then requests the psychologist to deposit the interpreter’s fee into the interpreter’s bank account on behalf of the group.

Credit card details are provided by the scamster to the psychologist. The credit card is likely to be stolen. Unless the card is blocked or declined, any payments accepted by the psychologist in accordance with this arrangement will be processed. Subsequently the psychologist would then transfer the relevant amount of money from their account into the account of the interpreter to cover the interpreter’s fee.

The actual owner of the stolen credit card would then notice the unauthorized transactions and notify his or her financial institution. The card owner has up to three to four months to take this course of action. If the transaction is facilitated by the psychologist using stolen credit card details, he or she may be the subject of further investigative inquiry or even potentially liable for the amount in question.

Once in receipt of funds from the psychologist, the initial contact would then cancel the appointments and ask for a refund of the deposit – most likely to another bank account rather than a credit card reversal.

Be extremely cautious with any arrangement that sounds like this and we recommend that you do not process such payments.

If you are suspicious of an email or any other unsolicited communication refer to the following websites:

www.scamwatch.gov.au or www.419scam.org  

Senate Inquiry and the APS position on the Better Access Medicare rebate structure

5 August 2011

Updated 15 August

The Government announced in the 2011 Federal Budget that there would be a funding cut to the Better Access initiative, involving a reduction in the yearly maximum allowance of sessions of psychological treatment a client can receive from 18 to 10 sessions. A Senate Inquiry was established in June to investigate these Budget funding cuts, according to the APS understanding, and the scope of this Inquiry was subsequently broadened to include other aspects of the Better Access initiative. This development has brought a broader focus of attention and inflamed the divisions within the profession over the two-tier Medicare rebate structure.

The APS has submitted a response to the Senate Inquiry focusing on the impact of the Better Access funding cuts on consumers. As the Senate Inquiry Terms of Reference also included an examination of the two-tier Medicare rebate system for psychologists, the APS also responded to this in its submission. The APS Board extensively discussed the strategic implications of the inclusion of the two-tier matter in the Senate Inquiry to inform the APS response. The Board is very aware of the highly divisive nature of the two-tiered Medicare rebate, the wide variety of views of APS members, and the sensitivities associated with issues of status, valuing of psychological work and reimbursement for this. The APS submission to the Inquiry presents the APS position in relation to the Medicare rebate structure, which is consistent with that originally proposed by the APS in 2006 when Better Access was being established.

The APS submission to the Senate Inquiry can be downloaded below.  Members are also encouraged to read the briefing paper for APS members which provides the APS position on the Better Access Medicare rebate structure.

• Download APS submission to the Senate Inquiry into Commonwealth Funding and Administration of Mental Health Services
• Download APS position on the Better Access Medicare rebate structure – briefing paper for APS members

Correction of inaccurate information on Medicare CPD requirements disseminated by the Australian Association of Psychologists inc.

31 March 2011

The Australian Association of Psychologists inc. (AAPi) has continued to publish completely inaccurate information in its email newsletter. The latest false claim is that the continuing professional development (CPD) requirements for psychologists who provide Focused Psychological Strategies (FPS) items under the Better Access initiative is an APS requirement rather than a Medicare requirement.

The Australian Government announced in the 2009 Federal Budget that CPD requirements would be introduced for FPS providers, as per the following extract from the Expense Measures for the 2009-2010 Federal Budget.

Medicare Benefits Schedule - Better Access Initiative - continuing professional development

The Government will introduce additional mandatory mental health training requirements for general psychologists, social workers and occupational therapists, under the Better Access to Psychiatrists, Psychologists and GPs through the MBS initiative. In addition, one‑off support payments of $200 will be provided to allied health professionals providing mental health services in rural areas to assist them in undertaking the new training requirements.

Allied mental health professionals who do not undertake the required professional development will not be able to access Medicare items after 30 June 2011. This will help ensure high‑quality services to patients as providers will be required to maintain their skills in order to continue to provide services eligible for the Medicare rebate. It is estimated that 80 per cent of all allied health professionals who currently access these items have already completed the required training.

No further details on the exact requirements were provided in the Budget at that time, but the details of actual CPD requirements were finalised by the Department of Health and Ageing late last year. The APS provided its members with this information as soon as it was available (December 2010 InPsych and subsequent APS Matters, website information and CPD mail-out). It has not been possible for the APS to alert non-APS psychologists, as Medicare Australia will not release contact details of Medicare providers due to privacy constraints - Medicare Australia is the only organisation that can communicate directly with Medicare providers.

The irresponsible dissemination of false information by AAPi is likely to cause further anxiety and confusion among psychologists when it is vital that the message is spread that FPS providers must meet these deadlines or will lose their billing rights to provide FPS items under Medicare, a situation which will result in serious implications for client care.

For further information, see .

Further information on matters associated with renewal of registration in Queensland and Victoria

30 March 2011

The APS has received advice that the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) will be writing to all psychologists who have been affected by the registration renewal problems, making an offer of a process to re-establish continuity of registration status. The APS was able to negotiate this outcome in collaboration with other professions, which is a significant concession from the government agency. Psychologists need to respond to the letter from AHPRA by Monday 2 May 2011 with a statutory declaration and other supporting documentation. It is possible that some members will not receive this letter due to AHPRA having incorrect contact details (the basis of the renewal problems in the first place). AHPRA has set up a Lapsing Hotline to answer specific queries on registration renewal problems (phone: (02) 6195 2618), which members should call if the AHPRA letter has not been received by early April.

To redress matters associated with loss of Medicare provider status resulting from lapsed registration, the following process should be followed. Psychologists should submit the necessary statutory declaration to AHPRA, after which their registration status will be backdated to the first date of lapsing. Evidence of restored continuity of registration can then be used to support re-claiming on Medicare. Medicare Australia has a Provider Hotline for MBS queries (phone: 132 150). Callers will hear a menu of options, one of which will include AHPRA queries. Callers selecting that option will be directed to a dedicated team prepared to answer these queries. The APS encourages members to take advantage of this process even if Medicare claims did not appear to have been disrupted, as a lapse in continuity of registration might be interpreted differently in the future. 

Further questions can be addressed to the APS Professional Advisory Service on 8662 3300 from Melbourne or 1800 333 497 from elsewhere, or by emailing professionaladvisory@psychology.org.au.  

Response to further misinformation circulated by the Australian Association of Psychologists Inc.

2 March 2011

The Australian Association of Psychologists Inc. (AAPi) has continued to circulate information in emailed newsletters to members of the psychology profession that includes entirely inaccurate claims about the APS position and actions. It is important that APS members are provided with accurate information regarding the position of the APS. The December 2010 item posted below addresses the scaremongering about the dire consequences for psychologists who do not have an area of practice endorsement under the new national registration scheme, and restates the APS position in relation to advocacy for continued Medicare funding for all psychological services provided under the Better Access initiative. This item will address the misinformation about the APS role in the establishment of the two-tiered system of Medicare rebates.

Even though the APS was not the architect of the Better Access initiative, it has borne the brunt of criticism regarding the perceived injustices of the system. It is important to understand the historical context in which the Government introduced the Better Access system that distinguished between clinical psychology providers and general psychology providers. When the Better Access implementation plan was first presented, the then Howard Government stipulated that only clinical psychologists would be eligible to provide services given it was a scheme to deliver services to people with mental disorders. The APS argued vigorously that there were many non-clinical psychologists who could provide effective psychological treatments to mental health consumers, and was able to successfully negotiate for these psychologists to provide ‘general' psychology services to boost community access to affordable psychological care.

The AAPi has based its entirely inaccurate claims about the APS position on ‘evidence' that has been procured from the Australian Government through the Freedom of Information avenue. One of the reasons the APS objected to the release of information was precisely because any material accessed could be taken out of context and used to create division and unrest. The APS prepared the documents that have been released under FOI in response to the Government's requests for specific information. However, most of the APS negotiations about the Better Access initiative were undertaken in direct face-to-face meetings for which there was no documentation.

The introduction of the two-tiered system of psychology Medicare providers under the Better Access initiative in 2006 has stimulated much debate and has been a very divisive issue within the psychology profession since that time. The gaining of access by psychologists to service provision under Medicare, although a highly successful mental health initiative for the Australian community, has indeed been a double-edged sword for the profession. The APS is doing everything possible to advocate for ongoing funding for all psychological services provided under Medicare and believes that continued public commentary about the issue, argument within the psychology profession, and scaremongering do not attract the sort of attention that assists in this advocacy.