Under the former $120 million Clever Networks program to roll out broadband infrastructure and services in rural and remote areas, telehealth projects have proven successful.
But with no progress on revamping arrangements for Medicare benefits so doctors and other clinicians can be paid for services provided, it is unclear how some services will remain financially viable.
A spokeswoman for the federal Department of Health said the government was providing $9.3m over two years to develop an evidence-based framework for managing the MBS.
"Any services involving telehealth will be considered under this new Quality Framework," she said.
Australasian TeleHealth Society vice-president and professor of health informatics at the University of Western Sydney, Anthony Maeder, said the underlying economic issues had not been addressed.
"Governments everywhere have injected funding to kickstart activities, often involving quite large demonstration projects," he said. "But you can't change the financial models on the basis of research pilots, you have to decide to run things differently."
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Autor(en)/Author(s): Karen Dearne
Quelle/Source: Australian IT, 04.05.2010
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