How it works, from first call to first report.
Onboarding takes 5–10 business days plus health fund processing. We record your billing preferences, register you with the funds and Eclipse, and build templates for your common procedures. From then on we collect your lists and send IFCs 7 days before surgery. We invoice within 48 hours of your codes and chase rejected claims weekly.
How does anaesthetic billing work?
Anaesthetic billing starts with the operating list from the surgeon's rooms. Each patient gets informed financial consent about the fee before surgery. After the case the anaesthetist submits MBS codes and times. Claims then go to Medicare, the health fund, DVA or WorkCover, rejected claims are followed up, and the anaesthetist gets a monthly report.
Five to ten business days, start to first list.
Here is the usual order of events. Onboarding on our side takes 5–10 business days. Health fund processing runs alongside it and can take longer.
- Week 1 · Day 1
A 15-minute call
We talk through your lists, hospitals, current setup and what you want from a billing service. No obligation.
- Week 1 · After the call
Agreement and your billing preferences
We record your RVG unit rate and which patients are asked to prepay. We note your known-gap or no-gap health fund elections and any patient discounts you apply. Moving from another biller? See how switching works.
- Weeks 1–2
Registrations and setup
We lodge your health fund registrations and gap scheme elections. We set up Eclipse, DVA, WorkCover and BPay/BPoint. All of this is at no extra cost. Fund processing times vary, and we keep you updated as each one comes through. New to private practice? See practice setup for new independents.
- Weeks 1–2
Templates and your surgical rooms
We build templates for your common procedures, with the expected MBS items and anaesthetic duration, so IFC estimates go out accurately. We also contact each of your surgical rooms so your lists come to us.
- By the end of week 2
Your first list with us
Lists arrive from the rooms. Each patient receives informed financial consent 7 days before surgery.
- Within 48 hours of your codes
Your first invoices
You submit the codes and times after each case, and we raise the invoice within 48 hours.
- First fortnight
Every claim checked by a senior biller
For your first two weeks with us, every claim is checked by a senior biller before it is lodged.
- The following month
Your first monthly report
You receive your own report of what was billed and collected, and our invoice for 4.5% + GST of what we collected the month before.
What we need from you to start
- Your Medicare provider number for each location you work at
- Your RVG unit rate
- Your gap scheme choices: known gap, no gap, or neither, fund by fund
- Your prepayment preferences: which patients, if any, are asked to prepay
- Contacts at each of your surgical rooms
- The bank details your patient payments should go to
What happens around each list.
- Before the list
Lists collected from your rooms
We collect your operating lists direct from each surgical room. You are never the courier.
- 7 days before surgery
IFC and questionnaire to the patient
Each patient receives informed financial consent with a prepayment request where you want one, plus an online pre-anaesthetic questionnaire to complete on their phone.
- After the case
You submit codes and times
Your only billing input: the MBS codes and anaesthetic times. Need to check an item? Try our free MBS Claim Checker, or read how to bill for anaesthetic services.
- Within 48 hours
Invoice raised and claims lodged
We invoice and lodge Medicare, Eclipse, health fund, DVA or WorkCover claims in MediTrust.
- Every week
Rejections followed up
Rejected or queried claims are followed up weekly until they are resolved.
- Whenever a patient needs us
Patients call us, and pay online
Patients with questions about their account call us, not you. They pay by card, BPay or BPoint.
Reporting and one invoice.
Each month you receive your own report of what was billed and collected. Reporting is individual to you — if you work in a group, each anaesthetist sees their own figures.
Our invoice arrives once a month, in arrears: 4.5% of what we collected for you the previous month, plus GST. See the full rate table and calculator.
| Fees collected for you last month | $50,000.00 |
|---|---|
| Fast Tracking fee (4.5%) | $2,250.00 |
| GST on the fee | $225.00 |
| Total invoice | $2,475.00 |
In a group practice
Groups follow the same process. Lists, consent, claims and follow-up run the same way for everyone. Each anaesthetist receives their own monthly report. Groups with over about $200,000 a month in collections get a custom rate, typically below 4.5%. Ask for a group quote.
Everything in the 4.5% + GST.
- Operating lists collected direct from your surgical rooms each week — you can still send them yourself
- Informed financial consent sent to each patient 7 days before surgery, with a prepayment request where you want one
- An online pre-anaesthetic questionnaire your patient completes on their phone
- Your only job after the case: submit the MBS codes and times
- Invoice raised within 48 hours of your codes arriving
- Medicare, Eclipse, health fund, DVA and WorkCover claims lodged and reconciled in MediTrust
- Rejected and queried claims followed up every week
- Patients pay by card, BPay or BPoint
- Individual monthly reporting
- The patient survey audit that meets ANZCA CPD requirements
Common questions
How long does onboarding take?
Usually 5–10 business days from signed agreement to your first list with us, plus however long the health funds take to process registrations and gap scheme elections.
What do I have to do after each case?
Submit the MBS codes and anaesthetic times. Everything after that — invoicing, claims, reconciliation, follow-up and patient queries — is ours.
Who sends the operating lists?
We collect them direct from your surgical rooms each week. If you'd rather send them yourself, that works too.
When is the patient told about the fee?
Informed financial consent goes to the patient 7 days before surgery, with a prepayment request where you want one, so there are no surprises on the day.
What if a list changes at the last minute?
The rooms tell us and we update it. You don't need to send corrections yourself.
How am I charged?
4.5% of what we collect for you, plus GST, on one invoice a month for the previous month's collections. Nothing is charged on claims that are rejected or never paid.
Ready when you are.
Book a 15-minute call and we'll walk you through exactly how this would run for your lists and hospitals. No obligation.