Where the November 2025 incentive made a difference
Since 1 November 2025, GPs have received an incentive for bulk billing any Medicare card holder, not only children and concession card holders. Comparing each area with its own recent trend, bulk billing nationally rose 3.7 points faster in the three quarters after the change than in the same quarters a year before.
Nearly every area sped up, the better-off least
316 of 332 local areas improved faster after the change than before it. The response was smallest in the better-off parts of the cities, a median of 1.9 points, against 4.1 points in the more disadvantaged. These are the AIHW’s groups of city areas, ranked by the ABS Index of Relative Socio-economic Disadvantage.
That matters for the gap between better-off and disadvantaged areas: the change lifted almost everyone, but it lifted the areas furthest behind the least.
Figure 1.How much faster bulk billing rose after November 2025, median local area by type of area, percentage points
Area types are the AIHW’s groupings of local areas by remoteness and, in the cities, socio-economic status. Sources: Medicare quarterly statistics, SA3 summary; AIHW.
The biggest and smallest responses
The strongest responses were in Darwin City (+15.7), Darwin Suburbs (+15.4) and Goldfields (+13.0). 15 areas improved no faster than before, including Queanbeyan, Limestone Coast and Weston Creek.
Largest response
| Area | Faster by |
|---|---|
| Darwin City NT | +15.7 |
| Darwin Suburbs NT | +15.4 |
| Goldfields WA | +13.0 |
| Litchfield NT | +11.8 |
| Bathurst NSW | +11.5 |
| Palmerston NT | +10.5 |
| Broken Hill and Far West NSW | +10.1 |
| Kwinana WA | +9.9 |
| Loddon - Elmore Vic | +9.5 |
| Mid North SA | +9.1 |
Smallest response
| Area | Faster by |
|---|---|
| Queanbeyan NSW | -3.0 |
| Limestone Coast SA | -2.2 |
| Weston Creek ACT | -1.6 |
| Brighton Tas | -1.5 |
| East Pilbara WA | -1.1 |
| Upper Hunter NSW | -1.0 |
| North Canberra ACT | -0.8 |
| Mildura Vic | -0.8 |
| Katherine NT | -0.6 |
| Tablelands (East) - Kuranda Qld | -0.5 |
Areas with at least 10,000 GP visits a quarter. Source: Medicare quarterly statistics, SA3 summary.
How this is measured
For each area, take the rise in the bulk-billing rate over the year to the three quarters after the change (Oct–Dec 2025, Jan–Mar 2026 and Apr–Jun 2026), and subtract the rise over the same three quarters a year earlier. Comparing like quarters removes seasonal swings; subtracting the earlier rise removes each area’s existing trend. What is left is how much faster the area improved once the change took effect.
It is an early estimate. The Oct–Dec quarter is only partly after 1 November, other things were changing at the same time, and the measure will firm up as more quarters arrive. It shows when areas sped up, not proof that the incentive alone caused it.