Medicare Explained podcast | A/Prof Tony Dicker and Matt Woollard discuss Medicare item numbers and rebates for GP skin cancer biopsies and investigations.
HealthCert Education
Biopsies are a routine part of skin cancer work in general practice, but understanding the Medicare requirements around billing can be less straightforward.
In this third episode of Medicare Explained, skin cancer doctor A/Prof Tony Dicker and practice operations expert Matt Woollard discuss Medicare item numbers for biopsies and other investigations, exploring the requirements for claiming rebates and some of the common areas of confusion for GPs.
The conversation covers the distinction between diagnostic biopsies and procedures performed for treatment, including the specific considerations when assessing seborrhoeic keratoses. They also discuss the importance of sending biopsy samples for histopathological examination, the multiple operations rule, and how Medicare defines the aftercare period following a biopsy.
Beyond biopsies, the episode explores other investigations relevant to skin cancer care, including total body photography, serial dermoscopy, and genetic testing, and what Medicare rebates are currently available for these services.
They also discuss excisional biopsies, including the distinction between removing a lesion to establish a diagnosis and excising it with the intention of treatment.
Whether you are reviewing your billing practices or looking to better understand the Medicare requirements that apply to skin cancer procedures, this episode offers a useful overview of the key considerations.
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Podcast playlist
Listen to all episodes in the Medicare Explained series.
This episode is also available on the HealthCert Education YouTube channel.
🎙️ Medicare ExplainedThis HealthCert Education podcast series takes GPs through the essentials of Medicare billing, building from Medicare fundamentals and consultation billing to investigations, procedures, and more complex clinical scenarios — with an initial focus on skin cancer medicine but later expanding into other areas of primary care. The series also explores billing tools and resources, compliance, and medico-legal considerations, with real case examples to help translate the principles into day-to-day clinical practice. |
H O S T S
A/Prof Tony Dicker
Associate Professor (Skin Cancer) & Course Coordinator MMed (Skin Cancer), The University of Queensland
Tony Dicker has practised full-time Skin Cancer Medicine in Melbourne since 2004, and previously practised in Brisbane. He obtained his PhD from The University of Queensland in molecular biology of skin cancer with Professor Ian Frazer's group at Princess Alexandra Hospital. He then spent three years as a dermatology registrar at the Royal Brisbane and Princess Alexandra Hospitals.
Matt Woollard
Healthcare Entrepreneur & Business Development Consultant
Born and educated in Adelaide, Matt Woollard is a seasoned healthcare entrepreneur with over two decades of experience building, scaling, and transforming healthcare businesses across Australia.
Matt began his healthcare career in 2000 as the second employee of Skin Alert Skin Cancer Clinics, where he worked alongside founder Paul Elmslie to grow the business from the ground up to a network of 14 clinics nationwide over seven years. As Chief Executive Officer of National Skin Cancer Centres, established in 2016, Matt led the business through a period of significant expansion before its successful acquisition by Sonic Clinic Services.
With a deep knowledge of skin cancer medicine, Medicare frameworks, and the operational realities of primary care, Matt's core expertise lies in business development, identifying, structuring, and growing healthcare assets in an increasingly complex and competitive landscape. Today, Matt consults across the broader healthcare sector, partnering with large corporates and private equity firms to develop and de-risk healthcare assets. He remains active in skin cancer medicine and brings the same sharp commercial lens to emerging opportunities in women's and mental health.
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