While GPs in the Western Plains might be few and far between, access to bulk billed appointments in rural and remote Australia is the highest across Australia.

The success of tripled bulk-billing rates means that more GPs can afford to stick around.

When the Federal government announced late last year that the incentive for general practitioners to bulk bill would triple for some patients, it rang a bell for GP clinics in areas like ours where access to bulk billed medical care is common.

For local GPs, however, President of the Rural Doctors Association of Australia (RDAA) Dr RT Lewandowski said the increased incentive could mean the difference between staying or going in rural areas. 

“Patients in rural and remote areas have the highest rates of bulk billing, so this increase will be a great boost for GP practices in these areas, many of which have been financially struggling for years as Medicare rebates have not kept pace with the increasing costs of running a practice.”

While city doctors receive 34 per cent more for a standard bulk billed consultation under 20 minutes, regional and rural doctors receive around 50 per cent more, depending on location. 

As a result of higher costs associated with the increased services provided in rural general practices, coupled with the high rates of bulk billing, Dr Lewandowski said local practices also have the highest out-of-pocket expenses for those patients who are not eligible for bulk billing. 

“The bulk billing support increase will better support practices financially, and reduce the need to pass on costs to the patient in order to continue to meet their overheads,” Dr RT Lewandowski said. 

For doctor visits away from home, the change is proving useful too. 

According to recent figures from the Australian Government, the increased bulk billing rate has seen an estimated 360,000 additional trips to the GP since it was implemented, with bulk billing apparently rising by 2.1 per cent. 

Of these additional visits, 202,000 of them were in regional areas. 

With the incentives eligible for children under 16, pensioners and other concession holders, Minister for Health Mark Butler said that seeing a bulk billing doctor has become much easier. 

“Eligible patients for around 3 out of 5 visits to the GP, and in some communities much more than that, meaning a very significant increase to general practice incomes,” Mr Butler said. 

The latest data from the success of the significant bulk billing investment comes as Medicare turned 40-years-old on 1 February, 2024.