Arthritis Australia is calling on the federal government to double the number of visits that people suffering from osteoarthritis can make to dieticians and fitness instructors on the public purse.
The lobby group on Wednesday released a survey of general practitioners' attitudes to treating the disease.
It found that doctors believed lack of access to such specialists was a major barrier to improving care.
Under the chronic disease management scheme GPs can refer patients to five Medicare-funded visits a year with allied health professionals such as dieticians, exercise physiologists, physiotherapists and occupational therapists.
But Arthritis Australia chief executive Ainslie Cahill says that's nowhere near enough.
"People with chronic conditions, and particularly arthritis, need more than five visits to be guided," she told reporters in Canberra.
"They need to be almost coached. It would have to be at least doubled (to 10)."
Arthritis researcher David Hunter says effective exercise and weight lose interventions "usually consist of anywhere in the order of 12 to 15 visits".
Professor Hunter, who works at the Royal North Shore Hospital in Sydney, argues too many doctors and patients believe osteoarthritis is an inevitable consequence of ageing.
"The key risk factors that we can modify that contribute to the disease getting worse and involving other joints are overweight and obesity," he said on Wednesday.
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Weight loss key to avoiding osteoarthritis
