On the 40th anniversary of Medicare new government data shows bulk billing rates are on the rise. It follows last year's budget which raised the incentive paid to GPs when they bulk bill children, pensioners, and concession card holders. Doctors have welcomed the news but say there's still a long way to go to make doctor's visits affordable for all.
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00:00 "Ok so next week for the board report..."
00:05 Once Gemma Sims has paid rent and all of her family's costs, she doesn't have much left
00:09 for visits to the doctor.
00:11 "When I do access a GP, which I haven't for a very long time, it's really expensive."
00:17 She has a health care card, but she says she hasn't been able to find any clinics that
00:21 bulk bill, and she's been prioritising her children's medical appointments.
00:25 "I'm missing out, I haven't been to the GP in at least three years."
00:31 To help people like Gemma, in last year's budget, the government raised the incentive
00:35 it pays to GPs to bulk bill.
00:38 It says it's working.
00:39 In the first two months, bulk billing rose 2.1 percentage points.
00:43 "In November and December alone, just two months, there were 360,000 additional free
00:50 visits to the doctor."
00:52 The health minister says some of the biggest increases in these appointments have been
00:55 in regional areas and in Tasmania, where bulk billing rates have been low.
01:00 "We need to have in mind continued access for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged
01:06 people in our community."
01:07 "Of course we want to see more increases into the future, but we've managed in one short
01:12 year to stop the slide and to start to see a turnaround."
01:17 When Peter Dutton was health minister, the bulk billing rates were about 84%.
01:21 Under Mark Butler, just over 77%.
01:24 GPs want further increases to Medicare rebates paid to primary care providers.
01:29 "If you invest in general practice, we get the outcomes that are needed for our patients."
01:35 That would help people like Gemma Sims.
01:37 "I've seen no difference and it's certainly not made it any easier for me financially
01:43 to access medical care at all."
01:47 That means universal health care remains out of her reach.
01:50 [BLANK_AUDIO]