The number of bulk billed GP visits in WA has risen by more than 280,000 in the last year, new Medicare data shows.
But the Royal Australian College of GPs said more needs to be done to help with the cost of seeing a medical professional, particularly for patients in remote and rural areas.
Medicare billing data from October 2023 to October 2024 shows the proportion of all GP visits that were bulk billed in the State rose from 68.4% to 70%, representing an additional 288,000 appointments.
Across the country there were an additional 103,000 bulk billed visits to the GP every week. WA reported the fifth highest increase in the proportion of bulk billed GP visits.
The increase in bulk billed appointments follows a $3.5 billion Federal Government investment in bulk billing incentives in November 2023, in a bid to improve access and make general practice services more affordable.
Bulk billing incentive payments were tripled for GPs who choose to bulk bill pensioners, concession card holders and children under 16 years of age for a range of general practice consultations.
Across Australia families with children under 16, pensioners and concession card holders are now bulk billed more often. Some 90% of GP visits with children under 16 were bulk billed in the past year, the data shows.
Meanwhile, the number of Australians visiting their GP has also increased in the past 12 months, up 1.2 percentage points.
RACGP WA chair Dr Ramya Raman said the tripled bulk billing incentive has made it easier for GPs to bulk bill children, seniors, and concession card holders, but it was targeted relief.
“Patients who don’t qualify for bulk billing incentives are paying more out-of-pocket because Medicare rebates have been below inflation for years and are nowhere near the cost of care,” she said.
“Patients need meaningful investment to improve access to affordable GP care.
“We’re also calling for a 20% boost to patients’ Medicare rebates for consults lasting more than 20 minutes, with more for patients in rural and remote communities, where costs are higher. Long consults are essential for good chronic care and to manage complex issues.”
Minister for Health and Aged Care Mark Butler said the Federal Government was working to strengthen and defend Medicare
“Although we’re not out of the woods yet and there is a lot of work still to do, we are seeing things turn around in those areas that we need,” he said.
“We’ve got more doctors, we’ve got more bulk billing, and we’ve got Urgent Care Clinics that have already seen more than 850,000 patients, all fully bulk billed.”
Recent polling by YouGov for the ABC revealed almost half of Australians had put off medical treatment due to the cost and 75% had struggled to find a bulk-billing GP.