July 2026
1 July 2026: assignment of benefit process modernised — transition to 30 June 2027
Bulk-billed services now need a recorded patient agreement (electronic or physical signature, or a recorded verbal agreement during the transition where other options are unavailable); the practitioner no longer signs; agreements are kept for at least two years with a copy to the patient on request; enduring assignment for MyMedicare-registered, aged-care and ACCHO patients has been announced. Full implementation from 1 July 2027. Practice action: confirm your clinical software version, decide the capture route per patient type, train reception, and start a daily claims-versus-agreements reconciliation. Full guide: how to be ready by 1 July 2027 →
July 2026
1 July 2026: 2.6 per cent indexation and item changes
MBS Online’s July 2026 update applied a 2.6 per cent indexation factor to most general medical services, diagnostic imaging and pathology groups P1, P4, P5, P6, P8 and P12, alongside new items (including developmental breast abnormality items 45070–45072, HLA testing item 73400, a cholangiocarcinoma panel item 73329 and two paediatric level 2 sleep study items) and a set of amendments across colonoscopy, breast imaging and other items. Practice action: confirm your clinical software fee schedule updated on 1 July and check private fees were reviewed against the new benefits. MBS Online — July 2026 news ↗
July 2025
1 July 2025: GP Management Plan and Team Care Arrangement items (721, 723) replaced
The GP Management Plan and Team Care Arrangement items were replaced by the GP chronic condition management plan items — preparation and review — with telehealth equivalents. Practice action: update every care-plan template, recall type and reception script that still references items 721 and 723; a surprising number of practices are still carrying the old wording a year on. Our chronic condition plan templates →
November 2025
1 November 2025: bulk billing incentives for all Medicare-eligible patients; 12.5 per cent practice program
Bulk billing incentive items became claimable whenever a GP bulk bills any Medicare-eligible patient for an eligible service, not only concession card holders and under-16s. Practices that bulk bill all eligible services for all eligible patients and register in MyMedicare can receive an additional 12.5 per cent incentive on MBS benefit earned, paid quarterly in arrears from the first quarter of 2026 and split equally between practice and providers. Practice action: model the fully-bulk-billed scenario before opting in, and settle the doctor-pay split in writing. The program explained →