Price fixing physios

The Herald reports:

The New Zealand Society of Physiotherapists is under fire from the Commerce Commission over claims of anti-competitive behaviour.

The industry body has been warned by the competition regulator after it sent a letter to one of its members accusing it of undercutting other physiotherapists by not introducing patient part-charges.

How stupid (or venal) are they? That is clearly illegal.  The Commission should take action to make it quite clear that such actions are not allowed.

Physiomed, which has clinics in Wellington, Christchurch, Oamaru and Dunedin, decided not to charge a co-payment and absorb the cost itself.

The decision prompted a rush of complaints from members to the society.

The society responded by writing a letter to Physiomed last year expressing its “disappointment” at the decision. …

Yes how dare they show that you can remain profitable on the ACC payment, without a part-charge.

“The profession as a whole will suffer if we do not value the services we offer and charge accordingly,” the letter says.

“We should not be trying to undercut other physiotherapy practices by aggressively advertising our fee structure or ‘free physiotherapy’.”

That is exactly what physios should be doing – competing on price, on quality and in what ever other way they want to.