MyMedicare
MyMedicare is a voluntary patient registration model. It aims to formalise the relationship between patients, their general practice, general practitioner (GP) and primary care teams.
Seeing your GP regularly and formalising the relationship you have with your GP and practice through MyMedicare can lead to better health outcomes.
It’s voluntary and free to register in MyMedicare, and registration is open to Australians with a Medicare card or Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) Veteran Card.
Assignment of Medicare benefits changes
From 1 July 2026, updated requirements apply for assigning Medicare benefits when a service is bulk billed. Assignment of benefit is the process where a patient agrees for their Medicare benefit to be paid directly to the provider as full payment for the service, meaning the patient has no out-of-pocket cost for that service.
There is a 12-month transition period where patients can provide a verbal assignment, providing practices time to update workflows, train staff and confirm software arrangements without needing to make every change immediately on 1 July 2026.
General practices should review their billing and administrative workflows to ensure patients are provided with clear information about the bulk billed service and are able to agree to assign their Medicare benefit before a claim is submitted.
Better Access Redesign
The Better Access initiative gives Medicare rebates to help people access mental health professionals and care, regardless of where they live. From 1 November 2025 the Australian Government has made changes to the Better Access initiative to respond to the Better Access evaluation.
The Bulk Billing Incentive Program
From 1 November 2025, the Australian Government will support thousands of general practices to bulk bill every patient, with the launch of 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. The even split of the BBPIP incentive payment recognises the of both, practices and GPs in delivering bulk billed services to patients.
Participating practices must bulk bill every eligible service for every Medicare-eligible patient, and must be registered for MyMedicare, to receive the BBPIP incentive payment. This incentive payment will be in addition to Medicare benefits and MBS BBIs.
Chronic Condition Management
The Department of Health and Aged Care has announced major changes to the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) items for chronic condition management from 1 July 2025. The framework supports patients with one or more chronic conditions that would benefit from a structured approach to their care. It also provides access to allied health and other services for patients that would benefit from multidisciplinary team care to manage their chronic condition.
General Practice in Aged Care Incentive
The General Practice in Aged Care Incentive supports general practices to deliver regular, proactive services and care planning to older people living in residential aged care homes.
To register and access the incentive your practice must be eligible and registered for MyMedicare. Your patients that are aged care home residents will also need to be registered for MyMedicare with your practice.
Evidence shows that seeing the same GP and healthcare team regularly leads to better health outcomes. Seeing your GP regularly and formalising the relationship you have with your GP and general practice through MyMedicare may lead to better health outcomes.
Registering with MyMedicare provides benefits to patients, general practices, and healthcare providers. To learn about these benefits, see:
MyMedicare practices can access:
- more information about regular patients, making it easier to tailor services to fit the patient’s needs
- the new longer telehealth items linked to MyMedicare outlined above, including:
- longer MBS-funded telephone calls (Levels C and D) with their usual general practice
- triple bulk billing incentive for longer MBS telehealth consultations (Levels C, D and E) for children under 16, pensioners, and concession card holders.
From 2024–2025, MyMedicare practices can access:
- the General Practice in Aged Care Incentive from 1 August 2024, which will support regular health assessments, care plans and regular GP visits for people in residential aged care homes
- new blended funding payments to support better care in the community for people with complex, chronic conditions who frequently attend hospitals. These arrangements will roll out progressively across the country over three years from the 2024–25 financial year
- Chronic Condition Management items linked to a patient’s registration in MyMedicare from July 2025, to support continuity of care for people with chronic and complex conditions. Patients who are not registered in MyMedicare will still be able to receive Chronic Condition Management items from their usual GP.
Practices that provide services to patients who would benefit from the new MyMedicare-linked MBS longer telehealth services or provide care to people in residential aged care are encouraged to register those patients in MyMedicare as priority cohorts.
More information:
The General Practice in Aged Care Incentive will make it easier for older people living in residential aged care homes to receive regular visits and care planning services from their responsible GP and practice. This supports improved continuity of care and aims to reduce avoidable hospitalisations.
MyMedicare information for patients
- Bulk Billing Incentives Calculator
- Bulk Billing Incentives Calculator: User guide for GP’s and Practice Managers
- Bulk Billing PIP Eligible Services
- Bulk billing incentives in general practice
- Services Australia Health Professional Education Resources – MyMedicare BBPIP
- Strengthening Medicare with more bulk billing resources
- Bulk Billing PIP FAQ’s
- Better Access User Guide
- Better Access fact sheet – professionals
- Better Access fact sheet – patients
- Better Access Telehealth FAQ’s
- Better Access to Psychiatrists, Psychologists and General Practitioners through the MBS initiative FAQ’s
- MBS changes under the Better Access initiative from 1 November 2025
- Better Access Cessation of the additional 10 sessions
- Upcoming Changes to Chronic Disease
Management Framework – Overview - Upcoming Changes to Chronic Disease
Management Framework – MBS Items
for GP Chronic Condition Management
Plans - Chronic Condition Management MBS User Guide
- Chronic Condition Management QI Workbook
- Transition Arrangements for Existing Patients
- Referral Arrangements for Allied Health Services
- Practice preparedness checklist
- Resource Stocktake List
The General Practice in Aged Care Incentive supports general practices to deliver regular, proactive services and care planning to older people living in residential aged care homes.
Services Australia have published information for practices about the process in PRODA and HPOS to register the practice to participate in the General Practice in Aged Care Incentive, and how to link Responsible Providers and patients. If you are supporting patients in Residential Aged Care Homes, we encourage you to register for the General Practice in Aged Care Incentive.
- GPACI User Guide
- GPACI QI Toolkit
- GPACI GP and Practice Information Kit
- GPACI Incentive Payment Structure
- GPACI Program Guidelines
- GPACI Payments & Correspondence
- Patient management resources
- GPACI Resource Index
- Instructions to MailMerge Registrations
- Webinar recordings
- My Medicare Registration Form
- Eligible MBS/DVA service items
Enquiries: Practices seeking support with MyMedicare can contact their PCAIT representative or email pcait@snhn.org.au.