Costs of Surgery

Understanding Surgical Fees: A Guide for Patients in Sydney and New South Wales

Navigating surgical costs can be complex. We are committed to providing transparency about our billing process, so you can make informed decisions about your care. This guide explains how our fees work, what influences them, and how we aim to minimize your out-of-pocket expenses for surgical procedures in Sydney.

Why Do Surgeons in Sydney Charge Out-of-Pocket Fees?

Specialist medical practices, including surgical clinics in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs, incur significant operating costs. These expenses cover staffing, professional insurance, and high-quality clinic facilities. To maintain an excellent standard of care, we cannot rely on the standard Medicare rebate alone. A bulk-billed surgical consultation fee of just $76 does not cover the high cost of providing comprehensive, personalized care.

Public vs. Private Surgical Fees

1. Surgery at a Public Hospital in Sydney For patients with a valid Australian Medicare card, surgery at the Prince of Wales Public Hospital is performed free of charge. Access to public hospital waiting lists is the same for all patients, whether you are referred from a private consultation or a public clinic.

2. Using Private Insurance at a Public Hospital This is an excellent option for patients who want to avoid private hospital excess fees and out-of-pocket gaps. Dr. Gandy has a "No Gap" agreement with Prince of Wales Public Hospital for privately insured patients. While Dr. Gandy personally performs the surgery, some post-operative care may be provided by his supervised surgical training team. Anaesthetic fees will be billed separately.

3. Private Hospital Surgical Fees At our private hospital locations (Prince of Wales Private and East Sydney Private Hospital), Dr. Gandy personally provides all surgical and post-operative care. Out-of-pocket fees are required to cover this service and are guided by the AMA (Australian Medical Association) schedule. The fee covers the procedure and up to six weeks of post-operative care.

• We cannot publish our fees online, but we are happy to provide a fee estimate once you have the MBS (Medicare Benefits Schedule) item number from your referral.
• Access Gap Cover: Dr. Gandy has agreements with most major Australian health funds, which may allow for the use of the Access Gap Cover scheme, reducing your out-of-pocket costs.

Special Offers "No Gap" Surgery

We currently have special "No Gap" surgical arrangements for Medibank Private and HCF members treated at East Sydney Private Hospital.

• HCF Members: Enjoy No Gap hernia surgery, No-gap endoscopy, and No-gap colonoscopy. This means no out-of-pocket fees for both surgical and anaesthetic services.
• Medibank Private Members: No-gap gallbladder surgery, No-gap hernia surgery, No-gap hiatus hernia surgery, No-gap endoscopy, and No-gap colonoscopy. Gold and Silver members may also have their hospital excess waived, resulting in a "zero out-of-pocket" cost for the entire treatment.

We strongly recommend checking with your health fund to see if you qualify for these offers.

Consultation Fees & Bulk-Billed Options

To maintain a high standard of care, a new patient consultation is charged at $250 ($174 out-of-pocket after the Medicare rebate). Most post-operative consultations are free.

• Bulk-Billed Clinic: We offer a bulk-billed option at our surgical outpatients clinic at Prince of Wales Public Hospital. However, waiting times can be up to three months, and you may be seen by a surgical trainee.

Anaesthetic Fees

Anaesthetists are separate providers. You will receive a separate financial consent form from them. We can assist by finding an alternative anaesthetist or, if appropriate, performing the surgery in the public hospital if you are not comfortable with their quoted fees.