Is Telehealth Bulk Billed in Australia?

The question "is telehealth bulk billed?" is one of the most common healthcare searches in Australia - and the answer is more nuanced than most people expect. Some telehealth is bulk billed. Some is not. And the distinction matters, because understanding it helps you make better decisions about where, when, and how to access healthcare online.

This guide breaks down how Medicare telehealth billing actually works, why private telehealth services charge what they charge, and whether the cost difference is worth it. No spin, just the financial reality of online healthcare in Australia.

Medicare has covered telehealth consultations since 2020, when temporary pandemic items were introduced. Many of these became permanent in January 2022. Under the current Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS), GPs can claim telehealth items for phone and video consultations - but there are conditions.

The Existing Patient Relationship Requirement

This is the key detail most articles gloss over. To claim a Medicare telehealth rebate, the GP generally needs to have an established relationship with the patient. The MBS requires that the patient has seen the GP (or another GP at the same practice) within the preceding 12 months. This is designed to ensure continuity of care and prevent "telehealth mills" from bulk billing consultations without any patient relationship.

What this means in practice: if you have a regular GP who offers telehealth, those consultations can be bulk billed. If you are seeing a new doctor for the first time via telehealth, the existing patient requirement usually means Medicare rebates do not apply.

When the existing patient requirement is met, the following telehealth services can be bulk billed:

• Standard GP consultations via phone or video (MBS items 91890, 91891, etc.)
• After-hours GP consultations
• Mental health consultations and treatment plan reviews
• Chronic disease management plan reviews
• Specialist consultations (when referred by a GP)
• Allied health consultations (psychology, dietetics, etc.) under specific programs

The bulk billing rate depends on the GP. Even when Medicare rebates apply, not all GPs choose to bulk bill. Some charge a gap fee on top of the rebate, particularly for longer consultations. This is the same dynamic as in-person appointments - bulk billing is the GP's choice, not a patient entitlement.

Here is where the landscape gets interesting. Private telehealth services - platforms that charge a flat fee without Medicare rebates - exist because of a gap in the public system. That gap is not clinical quality; it is access.

Consider the typical bulk-billed telehealth experience: you need an existing relationship with a GP, you book during their available hours, you wait for an appointment (often days to weeks), and the consultation follows the standard GP model. For ongoing care, this is excellent. For a one-off need - a medical certificate when you are unwell today, a repeat prescription before your medication runs out - the access barriers can be significant.

Private telehealth fills this gap. No existing patient requirement. No appointment booking weeks in advance. Flat-fee pricing with no surprises. The trade-off is that you pay out of pocket rather than through Medicare. For many Australians, particularly those without a regular GP (a growing demographic), this is a practical solution to a real access problem.

Let us lay out the real costs, because "free" bulk billing has hidden costs that people rarely acknowledge:

Bulk Billed Telehealth

• Consultation cost: $0 (bulk billed)
• Access requirement: existing GP relationship (seen within 12 months)
• Booking lead time: often 2–7 days, sometimes longer
• Availability: limited to GP's practice hours
• Time investment: booking, waiting, potential rescheduling
• Best for: ongoing care, chronic conditions, patients with a regular GP

Private Telehealth

• Consultation cost: typically $20–$80 depending on service type
• Access requirement: none - new patients welcome
• Booking lead time: same-day, often within hours
• Availability: extended hours, including evenings and weekends
• Time investment: minimal - fill in a form, get reviewed
• Best for: one-off needs, patients without a regular GP, time-sensitive requests

The calculation is personal. If you have a regular GP who bulk bills telehealth and you can wait a few days, bulk billing is the obvious choice. If you need something today, do not have a regular GP, or cannot get an appointment, private telehealth solves a genuine access problem at a modest cost.

This is an important point that many people miss. Even if your consultation is with a private telehealth service (not bulk billed), any prescription issued is still eligible for PBS subsidies. The PBS subsidy is attached to the medication, not the consultation.

So if a private telehealth doctor prescribes you a medication that is on the PBS, you will pay the same subsidised price at the pharmacy as you would if a bulk-billed GP had prescribed it. The consultation fee and the medication cost are completely independent.

Private health insurance in Australia generally does not cover GP consultations - whether in person or via telehealth. GP services fall under Medicare, not private health insurance. Your extras cover might include allied health (psychology, physiotherapy, etc.), but standard GP telehealth is not typically a claimable expense.

Some insurers are beginning to partner with telehealth platforms to offer members discounted or included consultations as a value-add. Check with your insurer, but do not assume your private health cover includes telehealth GP services - it probably does not.

Before booking

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Patients need to check billing model, Medicare eligibility, item fit, and any gap before assuming no cost.

A gap fee is the difference between what Medicare pays and what the doctor charges. For example, if a telehealth consultation attracts a Medicare rebate of $39.75 and the doctor charges $75, the gap fee is $35.25. You pay the gap; Medicare pays the rest.

Gap fees are common even with Medicare-eligible telehealth. Bulk billing means the doctor accepts the Medicare rebate as full payment - there is no gap. But as bulk billing rates decline across Australia (particularly in major cities), gap fees are becoming the norm rather than the exception for GP consultations.

Private telehealth services skip this complexity entirely. You pay a flat fee, there is no Medicare claim, and the price is the price. Whether that is simpler or more expensive depends on the specific service and what you are comparing it to.

When evaluating telehealth costs, consider what you are actually paying for:

• A consultation with an AHPRA-registered Australian doctor
• Same-day or next-day review of your request
• doctor-issued medical documentation (certificates, prescriptions)
• No travel, no waiting room, no time off work for an appointment
• Extended hours availability - evenings and weekends
• Privacy - no running into your neighbour in the waiting room

For many people, the convenience alone justifies the cost. An hour spent travelling to and sitting in a GP waiting room has a real cost - in lost wages, in childcare, in stress. Private telehealth is not "paying for something that should be free." It is paying for access, convenience, and speed that the public system does not always provide.

Some telehealth is bulk billed, some is not. Bulk billing generally requires an existing GP relationship and comes with the same access constraints as in-person bulk-billed care. Private telehealth costs money but solves real access problems - particularly for people without a regular GP, those who need something urgently, or anyone who values their time.

Neither model is inherently better. They serve different needs. The best approach depends on your situation: ongoing care relationships belong with your regular GP (bulk billed or not), while one-off needs are often better served by a platform designed for exactly that purpose.

• Services Australia: Medicare
• MBS Online: Medicare Benefits Schedule
• Department of Health, Disability and Ageing: MyMedicare
• Department of Health, Disability and Ageing: Telehealth
• Healthdirect: Telehealth