Government push to lift bulk billing rates nationwide

THE federal government has launched an $8.5 billion package to strengthen Medicare, expand bulk billing and improve access to local doctors in what has been described as the largest investment in the system’s 40-year history.

From November 1, new bulk billing incentives will be paid to GPs for every patient they bulk bill. Previously, these payments applied only to children under 16 and concession card holders.

The change, a key commitment at May’s federal election, aims to make nine out of 10 GP visits bulk billed by 2030 and triple the number of fully bulk-billing practices nationwide to about 4,800.

Patient savings are forecast to reach $859 million a year by the end of the decade.

Health Minister Mark Butler said the new incentives would support local GPs and ensure more patients can access affordable care.

“I want everyone to know they only need their Medicare card, not their credit card, to receive the health care they need,” he said.

“Delivering on this election commitment lifts up our entire nation and ensures no one is held back, and no one is left behind.”

Bulk-billing rates have fallen sharply in recent years, dropping from 88 per cent to 77 per cent in the three-year period between 2021 and 2024.

Over the same period, out-of-pocket costs for patients more than doubled — from $780 million to $1.66 billion — while the number of people delaying or deferring GP visits due to cost rose to 8.8 per cent, up from 3.5 per cent.

Federal member for Corangamite Libby Coker said the expansion would deliver tangible benefits for local residents and medical clinics.

More than 1,000 GP practices that previously offered mixed billing have already signed up to become fully bulk billing practices, joining the 1,600 clinics already doing so.

“Better access to health care should be a given, and that’s why we are acting,” Ms Coker said.

“We’re expanding Medicare so that millions more bulk-billed GP visits will be available every year. As part of this, more local clinics across our region will be supported if they bulk-bill every single patient.

“That’s good for doctors and it’s good for locals.”