COVID-19 Items

COVID-19 Items

Cutting Edge has the COVID-19 specific telehealth consultation items loaded. They are initially available for consultations between 13 March 2020 and 30 Sept 2020.
  1. These item numbers are stand-alone and cannot be billed with regular telehealth items such as 112. 
  2. Vulnerable patients must be Bulk Billed (change the Fee Basis to REBATE on an invoice).
  3. A referral is still required for initial Specialist Consultations
Full details of the items can be found on this Medicare web page.

Medicare has advised on 26 March 2020 that under the current exceptional and temporary circumstances, for the COVID-19 items only, it is sufficient for a practitioner to document in the clinical notes the patient’s agreement to assign their benefit as full payment for the service, in lieu of printing a DB4 Bulk Bill Assignment Advice form, Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) Printed Statements (D1216S) etc. This means that agreement can be obtained through one of three options being 
  1. in writing,
  2. by email,  or
  3. verbally through the technology with which the attendance is conducted. 
This agreement can be provided by a patient, or another person, such as the person’s carer or family member. The practitioner should keep their own record that the patient agreed or acknowledged that the service was provided, and that the Medicare benefit could be paid directly to the practitioner.

Please note that Cutting Edge automatically creates the appropriate form whenever when you submit an electronic claim. It is stored in the Invoice History and can be printed from there.


    • Related Articles

    • How to create Custom Items/User Items

      The User Items screen allows you to create custom items to add to your invoice, such as a "Thank you for your payment" or "This invoice has been submitted to Medicare for rebate processing" etc. To add a new User Item, go to the Databases/User Items ...

    • Order for Anaesthetic Items

      The correct order for anaesthetic claims is as follows: Pre-op consultation item (17610 to 17690) Anaesthetic base item (20100-21997 or 22900–22905 if you're the anaesthetist, 25200 or 25205 if you’re the assistant anaesthetist, 22060 if you’re the ...

    • Creating epidural items

      Epidural items can be sent with or without other items on the invoice. Cutting Edge prompts you for duration in minutes when required to automatically calculate the correct fee and set the Service Text on the Extra Details tab, which is required with ...

    • What are the 1 November 2019 changes to MBS items

      From 1 November 2019 the Medical Benefits Schedule will revise many of the items for anaesthesia. Both Cutting Edge and Access Anaesthesia have been updated to apply these changes on invoices with a date of service from 1 Nov. There are 28 amended ...

    • New MBS Anaesthetic Items from 1 March 2024

      There are several new items available to Anaesthetists from 1st March 2024 22052 Transfusion of blood by an anaesthetist, for intra-operative normovolaemic haemodilution, 6 Units (anaesthetic equivalent of 13703) 22053 Insertion of lumbar ...