Tasmanian doctors may be forced to take industrial action over a Government decision it says will wrongly divert “precious” public health dollars.

The Tasmanian Industrial Commission recently approved a scheme that allows salaried doctors to be paid for treating private patients in public hospitals.

The State Government is challenging the decision, saying it would result in vital public health money being diverted to a 35 per cent salary loading for salaried doctors.

“I was really surprised at some of the comments made, in fact, the AMA and the Government have substantially reached agreement,” Tasmania’s Health Minister Michael Ferguson says.

“And last year the Government announced that we'd agreed to a 6.5 per cent increase for doctors, that's already now being paid.”

But Australian Medical Association (AMA) Tasmanian president Tim Greenaway said the change was needed to help the state attract and retain doctors.

“Doctors are extremely angry,” he said.

“And many are telling me that it is a marker of the fact the Government cannot be trusted and it does threaten the reform process.

“We are having trouble attracting and retaining doctors yet this Government has reneged on its obligation to honour an Industrial Commission decision,” he said.

“At the same time they are throwing millions of dollars at an unsustainable locum service in the north west.”

AMA doctors and non-members are meeting to discuss a plan of action this week.