Bulk billing rates in the state are falling despite new incentives to encourage more GPs to do so.
Health Department figures show the portion of West Australians being bulk billed fell slightly between September last year and the same time this year.
Despite a number of measures to encourage bulk billing, the percentage of patients being bulk billed in the state dropped from 70.2% to 69.9%.
The statistics come from the first quarter of the 2025/2026 financial year, prior to the bulk billing incentive coming in, something the federal government touts as having the potential to see 90% of GP visits bulk billed by 2030.
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Nationally, the rate of bulk billing remained unchanged from this period last year, staying at 77.6%.
The data showed those in WA were paying about $4 more to see a doctor than they were 12 months ago.
The average out of pocket cost to see a GP in WA this past quarter was $50.47, up from $46.69 in 2024, but similar to the average out of pocket costs across the country.
Health Consumers’ Council WA executive director Clare Mullen said while any decrease in access or increase in out of pocket costs was a concern, it was “too early to draw any conclusions” about the impact of government incentives around bulk billing.
“We know there’s been a fair bit of commentary from some doctors that they don’t expect these incentives to change practice – but it’s hard as consumer advocates to anticipate what will happen in practice,” she said.
“We don’t know what might happen if patients decide they have to move to a bulk billing practice in order to be able to afford primary care and the effect this might have on practices’ decisions.”
At the same time, fewer Australian’s are delaying or not using health services when needed compared to two years ago, Australian Bureau of Statistics data show.
The detail, which came as a result of surveys with more than 25,000 Australians over the age of 15 years, found that in 2024-25 some 27% of people delayed or did not see a GP when needed, lower than the 2022-23 figure, which was 30%.
RACGP President Dr Michael Wright said the data showed GP access was improving.
He said patients being able to see a GP who knows their history was essential.
“You don’t need to start from the beginning. Your GP knows what you came in for last time, what medications you take and why, and what screening you should be doing to catch issues early. There’s no substitute for that care,” he said.
Dr Wright said research consistently showed patients who could spend the time they needed to with their GP were less likely to need hospitalisation and once again called for an increase to Medicare funding for longer consults to make general practice more economically viable.
“If we want a resilient health system and cost-effective hospital system, there’s a simple answer. Increase Medicare funding for long consults so patients can spend the time they need with their GPs,” he said.
Close to one in ten people, or 8% of those surveyed, cited cost as a reason for delaying or not seeing a GP when needed.
In 2024-25, one in four people (26%) said they waited longer than they felt acceptable for a GP appointment, while two in three people (67%) could always see their preferred GP when needed.
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The survey also highlighted the differing experiences of the health service by remoteness.
Nearly one in two people (46%) living in major cities were seen by a GP for urgent medical care within four hours, compared to 30% of those living in outer regional or remote areas.
Ms Mullen added that she hoped to see an increase in the percentage of services that are bulk billed in the next quarter.
“We’d also hope to see no increase in the average out of pocket cost for consumers,” she said.
“The fact that the out of pocket costs for this quarter were higher in regional areas than in the metro area is a concern and we would hope to see these inequities addressed.”
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