AHPRA targets doctors using ‘predatory practices’ to fund their treatments
Approvals for patients to use their retirement savings for medical treatment have gone up over the past five years.
AHPRA and the ATO are working together to identify doctors and dentists routinely helping patients access super funds to pay for medical treatment.
Early access to super has been possible providing it is done on compassionate grounds, but the watchdog says it wants to put an end to ‘predatory practices’.
Over the last financial year, some 50,000 applications were approved for treatments totalling a billion dollars — up from $389 million five years before.
The cash is frequently used for weight loss surgery, but approvals for IVF treatments have almost doubled and dental treatments have risen nearly sixfold over the same period.
