Almost two-thirds of Australians bulk-billed for all GP care amid extra incentives for doctors

Bulk-billing means a GP accepts the Medicare benefit as full payment for an eligible consultation. The patient does not pay a separate fee at the appointment. This can make care easier to afford, especially for people who might otherwise delay seeing a doctor.

For example, if a practice bulk-bills all eligible Medicare services, an enrolled patient can attend without being charged a gap. The government then pays the Medicare rebate to the GP or practice. The article reports that 63% of Australians were bulk-billed for all their GP care in 2024–25.

Bulk-billing is helpful, but it is not the only measure of a strong health system. Patients also need timely appointments, good-quality care and positive health outcomes. The RACGP is seeking higher Medicare rebates for longer consultations, especially when doctors manage complex and chronic conditions.

Bulk-billing increased across several measures. The share of Australians bulk-billed for all their GP care rose to 63%, from 56% in both 2024 and 2025. In the RACGP survey, 26% of GPs said they bulk-billed all patients, up from 12% in 2025. The report links the change to new government incentives.

These figures use different units. The RACGP patient measure asks whether people were bulk-billed for all their GP care. The GP survey measures doctors’ reported practice policies. Medicare administrative data measures services instead: 81% of GP consultations were bulk-billed in 2025–26, compared with 78% the year before.

A patient may have some bulk-billed and some paid consultations, so patient and service figures will not match. The GP survey also covered 2,766 respondents, about 7% of the GP workforce. Researchers therefore caution that reported experiences may differ from administrative data and patient outcomes.

The incentive was an additional payment for practices that bulk-billed all eligible Medicare services for every Medicare patient. It was introduced in November. The policy aimed to make universal bulk-billing more financially workable for practices and doctors.

Eligible clinics receive a 12.5% top-up payment. The bonus is divided between the practice and the doctor. This means the incentive supports both the business running the clinic and the GP providing care. The RACGP report links the increase in reported bulk-billing with this recent investment.

The reported results suggest a substantial change, but they do not prove that the payment was the only cause. GPs reporting that they bulk-billed all patients rose from 12% in 2025 to 26%. The share of Australians bulk-billed for all GP care reached 63%, although it remained below the 70% recorded in 2019.

The proportion of Australians delaying GP care because of cost fell from 8.8% in 2023–24 to 7.7% in 2024–25. This is a reduction of 1.1 percentage points. It indicates that cost barriers became less common, although they did not disappear.

The change occurred alongside higher bulk-billing rates. The RACGP found that 63% of Australians were bulk-billed for all their GP care, up from 56% in both 2024 and 2025. The report describes the results as likely reflecting the federal government’s investment in Medicare bulk-billing incentives.

Affordability remains only one part of access. Dr Luke Slawomirski warned that one-third of patients were still unable to see a GP when they needed one. Dr Michael Wright also said success cannot be measured solely by bulk-billing. Patients need affordable care, available appointments and effective treatment.

The current level is better than the 56% recorded in both 2024 and 2025, but it remains below the 2019 figure. In 2019, 70% of patients were bulk-billed for all their GP care. The latest result is 63%, a seven-percentage-point gap.

The improvement followed new financial support for practices. In November, clinics bulk-billing all eligible Medicare services for all Medicare patients became eligible for a 12.5% top-up, shared between the practice and doctor. The RACGP report says the policy likely contributed to the increase.

The comparison shows progress, not a complete return to earlier conditions. The RACGP survey found 26% of GPs bulk-billed all patients, up from 12% in 2025. However, the report also stresses that affordability is not enough. Access, care quality and patient outcomes must be considered too.

Bulk-billing measures affordability, not whether a patient can obtain an appointment. A person may face no fee but still struggle to find a GP, wait too long or see a preferred doctor. Higher bulk-billing therefore cannot by itself prove that the health system is accessible.

The article gives a clear example. More than two-thirds of patients with a preferred GP were always able to see that doctor when needed, but roughly one-third were not. Dr Luke Slawomirski called this a sizeable access problem, even as he described the bulk-billing findings as good news.

A strong system also needs quality care and better patient outcomes. Dr Michael Wright warned that inequities could emerge if some communities still face higher out-of-pocket costs or reduced access. The RACGP wants Medicare rebates to better reflect the cost of complex and chronic care, while Slawomirski supports broader payment reform.

Fee-for-service pays providers in relation to particular services they deliver, such as consultations. Australia’s primary care system relies heavily on this approach. Dr Luke Slawomirski argues that it can encourage a focus on the number of services rather than the overall value and results of care.

For chronic or complex conditions, care often involves longer consultations and several health professionals. A blended model would add other funding methods alongside service payments. The article connects this approach with support for multidisciplinary teams and with paying for the value of care, rather than simply reimbursing the cost of providing each service.

The proposed change is not a replacement described in detail, but a direction for reform. The Strengthening Medicare Taskforce recommended moving away from heavy reliance on fee-for-service. An independent primary care pricing authority could help, while better funding could support more people working in primary care and help prevent illness.