South Eastern Melbourne Primary Health Network (SEMPHN) will soon seek to commission general practice providers to establish four new Medicare Urgent Care Clinics servicing residents in and around the following Local Government Areas (LGAs) and locations:

• Bayside
• Stonnington - with a focus on the eastern area and bordering suburbs
• Mornington Peninsula - with a focus on Hastings
• Cardinia - with a focus on Pakenham 

Please note: locations are subject to change. The upcoming Request for Tender (RfT) will outline the final eligible locations.

This tender opportunity is part of the Commonwealth Department of Health, Disability and Ageing's commitment to expand UCCs across the country, opening 50 new clinics nationwide, including 12 in Victoria.

SEMPHN expects to open a RfT in mid-late August 2025.

Background information

Medicare Urgent Care Clinics (UCCs) reduce demand on hospital emergency departments by providing a primary care service for urgent conditions that do not require an emergency response. UCCs are GP-led services that increase access to primary care, providing treatment to people with conditions such as mild infections, sprains, broken bones and minor burns. They also offer pathology and imaging services.

UCCs are expected to be open for 14 hours a day, 7 days a week (including public holidays), and are free for people of all ages (with or without a Medicare card).

Visit health.gov.au and refer to the Medicare UCC Operational Guidance for more information. 

Eligibility requirements 

Detailed eligibility criteria will be available in the RfT documentation. 

Tender documentation and process

SEMPHN will use eProcure as its portal for this RfT opportunity. To apply, interested providers must be registered for eProcure. Once registered, you will receive email notifications when the tender is published. Additionally, we publish a commissioning newsletter that shares tender opportunities and announcements. You can sign up to receive SEMaphore here.

Communication and enquiries

Once the RfT opens, interested parties will be able to submit questions via eProcure.The team is currently unable to answer any questions about this opportunity.

We look forward to sharing more details about this exciting opportunity in the coming weeks and expanding these critically important services within the south east Melbourne region.