Obstetrician Dr Ken Law has established “No Gap” arrangements with most Private Health Funds for deliveries and obstetric hospital admissions. All in-hospital obstetric services will be billed directly to your Private Health Fund, and so there will be no out-of-pocket obstetrician fees for hospital admissions during your pregnancy and delivery, regardless of whether it is a normal vaginal birth, instrumental delivery (vacuum cup assisted or forceps) or Caesarean delivery.
It is not essential to have private Health insurance in order to see Dr Ken Law for management of your pregnancy. Dr Ken Law welcomes self-funded patients for delivery, and his secretaries will help you obtain the relevant fee estimates from Greenslopes Private Hospital, and any other specialists who may be involved in your maternity care (e.g. Paediatrician, Anaesthetist).
Ultrasound scans done in the consulting rooms during the antenatal visits will NOT incur any additional charges if you are eligible for Medicare rebates and your have private insurance covering Obstetrics.
Formal Ultrasounds performed at Medical Imaging facilities may incur out-of-pocket expenses. In general, two formal Ultrasound Scans are routinely recommended in all pregnancies:
The main out-of-pocket fee payable to the Obstetrician for private obstetric care is the Pregnancy Management Fee, which covers all the “on-call” fee for the Obstetrician 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for your entire pregnancy. It also means that there are no additional out-of-pocket expenses for any hospital admissions during your pregnancy.
The Pregnancy Management Fee is invoiced at 20 weeks, and payable at 28 weeks. The Medicare Item number for the Pregnancy Management Fee is 16590, with a rebate of ~$400. If you have reached the Medicare Safety Net, then you may be eligible for a higher Medicare rebate. The Extended Medicare Safety Net is triggered when the total out-of-pocket outpatient medical expenses reach $2414 (as at July 2023) in a calendar year (i.e. January to December) for singles and families. For concession card holders, including those with a Health Care Card, or anyone receiving Family Tax Benefit (Part A), the threshold for the Extended Medicare Safety Net is $668. Please download the Medicare App on your phone to find out whether you have reached the Extended Medicare Safety Net, and find out whether you are eligible for additional rebates for your Obstetrician fees.
You should also apply to Medicare to combine the Medicare Safety Net with your partner, by registering as a family. Even if you and your partner are on the same Medicare card, you still need to register with Medicare using this form (MS016) to combine the Safety Net for your family. Click here to download the form.
Brisbane Gynaecologist FeesFees and charges for gynaecological procedures are generally at or below the recommendation of the Australian Medical Association (AMA). There will be some out of pocket expenses for services provided, but Medicare and/or Private Health Funds will fund a majority of the fees. Dr Ken Law’s Practice offers Medicare Online electronic claiming facilities, so you do not have to stand in a queue at a Medicare office to claim your rebates.
Your private health fund will cover a major portion of the costs of any gynaecological surgery that you may require. There will be some out-of-pocket expenses for the surgical procedure, and our staff will be happy to explain this to you.
In general, fees vary depending on the complexity of your surgery. When planning surgery, Brisbane Gynaecologist Dr Ken Law will provide an estimate of surgical fees based on the likely findings and procedure(s) required, although actual costs may vary depending on the actual findings at the time of surgery. Surgical fees are payable at least one week prior to surgery, and if the complexity of the surgery ends up being different to that anticipated pre-operatively, the deposit may be partially refunded or additional fees may be payable following surgery.
There are no additional fees for inpatient consultations during your hospital stay following surgery. At your post-operative follow-up consultation, Dr Ken Law will discuss your operative findings and procedure in detail with you.
Uninsured Patients:
You do not need to have private health insurance to see Dr Ken Law for gynaecological care. Australian residents will be able to obtain Medicare Rebates for the consultation and any procedures performed in the consulting rooms.
If surgery is required in the hospital, Dr Law’s secretaries will help you obtain the relevant fee estimates from Greenslopes Private Hospital, and any other specialists who may be involved with your surgery (e.g. Anaesthetist). Informed financial consent is obtained before any procedures are carried out.
Most major surgery require the use of a surgical assistant in order to perform your surgery. Dr Ken Law has a dedicated group of surgical assistants who work closely within the team. Surgical Assistant’s fees are billed together with the surgical fees.
Dr Ken Law uses Pathology service providers that bulk bill directly to Medicare#. Whenever possible, there will be no out-of-pocket expenses for these Pathology Tests.
For Pathology tests requested during your hospital admission (e.g. histology from your surgery), most private health insurance cover the cost directly from the Pathology service provider. However some health insurance companies (e.g NIB Health) do not cover the entire cost of the Pathology service provider, and you may incur out-of-pocket charges directly from the Pathology service provider for any tests ordered during your hospital admission.
If you do not have private health insurance, please contact the Pathology service provider (Sullivan Nicolaides or QML) for an estimate of any out-of-pocket charges for Pathology Tests required during your surgery/hospital admission.
If you require surgery for gynaecological treatments, you will require an Anaesthetist. For obstetrics, you may choose to use the services of an Anaesthetist for your labour and delivery (e.g. epidural for pain relief or Caesarean delivery). There may be out-of-pocket expenses payable to the Anaesthetist on top of Health Fund rebates.
Prior to surgery, Dr Ken Law’s anaesthetist will contact you to provide an estimate of any out-of-pocket anaesthetic fees.
A Paediatrician will attend to your baby either at delivery or following birth. There may be out-of-pocket expenses payable to the Paediatrician on top of Health Fund rebates.
Information regarding the out-of-pocket charges from the Paediatricians will be given to you during the pregnancy.
# If you are not eligible for Medicare (e.g. non-Australian residents), please discuss fees with the Practice Reception.
Brisbane Obstetrician and Gynaecologist | Brisbane Colposcopy Specialist
Located on the south side of Brisbane (~7 minutes from the Brisbane CBD)
https://www.drkenlaw.com.au
