The government's new workplace relations legislation allows medical certification for sick leave - once the domain of medical doctors - to be issued by anyone who is a registered health practitioner in their respective State or Territory.
The AMA says it will use the issuing of a medical certificate by a Chinese medicine practitioner as a test case in the federal court, to highlight what it calls the 'absurdity' of the laws.
AMA President Dr Mukesh Haikerwal says only medical doctors should issue sick leave certificates, and then only for serious illnesses or injuries.
“For a day or two for a cold, the logical solution is not to have to provide any sort of certificate, just tell people that you are actually unwell. It's as much use as going to a pharmacist or the podiatrist or the optometrist as anywhere else,” Dr Haikerwal said.