Upcoming MBS changes – Effective 1 November 2025
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Changes to the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) will take effect from this Saturday, 1 November 2025. Below is an overview of what’s changing, key considerations for your practice, and helpful resources to support your preparation.
Bulk Billing Incentive Expansion
From November 1, the eligibility for bulk billing incentives (BBIs) will be expanded to include all Australians with a Medicare card. There is nothing you need to do to access the expanded incentives, and they are not linked to MyMedicare registration. You will have received information from your software vendor regarding any updates required to ensure incentives are applied correctly.
The value of MBS BBIs depends on the service provided and the location. Find out more about the Modified Monash Model location classification system and MBS BBIs at MBS Online.
Bulk Billing Practice Incentive Program (BBPIP)
The Bulk Billing Practice Incentive Program Guidelines have now been released.
From 1 November, practices can choose to participate in the new MyMedicare program BBPIP. Practices participating in BBPIP will receive an additional quarterly 12.5% incentive payment on MBS benefits paid from eligible services, split evenly between the GP and the practice.
Things you can do to prepare:
- Discuss with your teams whether participating in this incentive is right for your practice and how to communicate this decision with your patients. Resources which might be useful for these conversations:
- BBPIP calculator and user guide
- BBPIP Practice Readiness Checklist
- BBPIP Planning Kit for General Practice
- RACGP resources (includes posters and scripts for on-hold messages, etc, to communicate with patients)
- Register for MyMedicare and/or set up your organisation site record:
- To access this incentive, your practice will need to be registered with MyMedicare. Find more information on how to do that here.
- For non-accredited practices that are not already registered, a new exemption will be available on 1 November in the organisation register, which will allow you to participate in BBPIP only.
- If you are registered, make sure all your GPs are linked to your organisation site record. Information on setting up your site record correctly can be found
here.
Changes to Better Access initiative
From 1 November, changes will be made to the Better Access to Psychiatrists, Psychologists and General Practitioners through the Medicare Benefits Schedule (Better Access) initiative. These changes include the removal of mental health treatment plan (MHTP) reviews and mental health consultation items from the MBS.
An MBS user guide has been developed to assist with these changes and can be accessed
here.
Changes to the face-to-face requirements for telehealth for MyMedicare enrolled patients
From November 1, patients will be able to access telehealth services, even if they have not seen their GP face-to-face in the previous 12 months if they are accessing the service through their MyMedicare registered practice.
This change recognises that higher quality care is achieved through telehealth when it is provided in the context of a continuous clinical relationship.
Further details can be found here.
Long-Acting Reversible Contraceptive changes
From 1 November 2025, there will be an increase to MBS items for insertion and removal of Long Acting Reversible Contraceptives (LARC) and a newly introduced incentive item.
Further details can be found here.
This article was produced with support from Eastern Melbourne Primary Health Network.
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