Edited version of private advice

Authorisation Number: 1051715909824

Date of advice: 14 July 2020

Ruling

Subject: Supplies of medical reports to third parties

Question 1

Is your supply of a medical report such as an "Opinion on File" or a "Treating Physician's/ Consulting Surgeon's Report" requested by a third party (with regards to a specific patient), which is not required for the medical management of the patient's condition and for which no Medicare benefit is payable, a taxable supply?

Answer 1

Yes.

Question 2

Is your supply of a copy of the "Doctor's File" requested by a third party (in relation to a compensation claim), where no clinical care of the patient is involved and for which no Medicare benefit payable, a taxable supply?

Answer 2

Yes.

This ruling applies from:

14 July 2020.

Relevant facts and circumstances

·        You are registered for Goods and Services Tax (GST) effective from 1 July 2000.

·        You are a medical practitioner for the purposes of the Health Insurance Act 1973.

·        You operate your business (medical practice) from premises in Australia.

·        You provide several different reports to third parties that are not required for the medical management of the patient's condition, with no Medicare benefit being payable for such services.

·        You receive payment for providing the abovementioned reports.

Relevant legislative provisions

A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 (GST Act):

·   Section 9-5

·   Section 38-7

·   Section 195-1

Reasons for decision

Detailed reasoning

Section 9-5 of the GST Act provides that you make a taxable supply if:

(a)   you make the supply for consideration; and

(b)   the supply is made in the course or furtherance of an enterprise that you carry on; and

(c)   the supply is connected with the indirect tax zone (essentially, Australia); and

(d)   you are registered, or required to be registered, for GST.

However, the supply is not a taxable supply to the extent that it is GST-free or input taxed.

In your case, the reports that you provide are supplies:

·          made for consideration (you receive payment for providing the reports); and

·          made in the course or furtherance of your enterprise (supplying reports is one of the services you offer in your business); and

·          connected with the indirect tax zone (your medical practice is conducted from business premises located in Australia); and

·          you are registered for GST.

Therefore, where your supplies of such reports are not GST-free or input taxed, they will be taxable supplies.

There are no provisions of the GST Act under which your supplies of such reports would be input taxed.

Supplies of medical reports by a medical practitioner can in certain circumstances be GST-free under section 38-7 of the GST Act.

Subsection 38-7(1) of the GST Act states as follows:

(1)   A supply of a *medical service is GST-free.

(* an asterisk denotes a defined term in the GST Act)

A medical service is defined in section 195-1 of the GST Act as follows:

medical service means:

(a)   a service for which Medicare benefit is payable under Part II of the Health Insurance Act 1973; or

(b)   any other service supplied by or on behalf of a *medical practitioner or *approved pathology practitioner that is generally accepted in the medical profession as being necessary for the appropriate treatment of the *recipient of the supply.

How this applies in your case

The types of reports that you supply, as set out in the facts, are not supplies of a "medical service" as defined in section 195-1 of the GST Act.

One of the ways in which a supply could be a "medical service", and thus GST-free under subsection 38-7(1) of the GST Act is if it is a service for which Medicare benefit is payable.

You however advised that no Medicare benefit is payable in relation to the supply by you of any of the reports.

Another way in which a supply could be a GST-free "medical service" is where the supply is made by or on behalf of a medical practitioner or approved pathology practitioner and it is a service that is generally accepted in the medical profession as being necessary for the appropriate treatment of the "recipient of the supply".

A medical practitioner or approved pathology practitioner is supplying appropriate treatment when they use their professional skills to:

·        assess a patient's health

·        work out a course of action to preserve, restore or improve the patient's physical or psychological wellbeing, as far as the practitioner's training allows

·        supply a treatment that is generally accepted by their profession as being appropriate for the patient.

Appropriate treatment includes preventative medicine and routine check-ups, such as cancer screening and vaccinations, as they are appropriate for the people involved.

You are a medical practitioner for the purposes of the Health Insurance Act 1973. However, the "recipient of the supply" in relation to each of the types of reports that you supply, as set out in the facts, appears to be another business rather than an individual, as it is other businesses who are the ones requesting such reports from you.

If that is the case, then there could not be any service provided by you that is generally accepted in the medical profession as being necessary for the appropriate treatment of the "recipient of the supply", since only individuals require medical treatment.

In any case, even if the "recipient of the supply" was an individual, you have advised that none of the reports are required for the medical management of the patient's condition that the report relates to. You also advised that the reports are not involved in the care of the patient between one medical practitioner and another.

Hence, based on what you have advised, none of the reports would be generally accepted in the medical profession as being services generally accepted in the medical profession as being necessary for the appropriate treatment of the recipient of the supply. As such, the supply of the reports subject to this ruling are not GST-free under subsection 38-7(1) of the GST Act.

In conclusion, your supplies of the types of reports, as set out in the facts, are taxable supplies and GST is payable by you on such supplies.