This report analyses historic trends in bulk billing and out-of-pocket costs to provide region-based insights into how the impacts of the 1 November 2025 Medicare changes have impacted general practitioner accessibility across metropolitan and regional Australia, providing region-based insights. It compares the capital city and non-capital city areas of each state to determine whether any accessibility gaps remain, and exactly where they are. It finds that the trends are mixed but encouraging.

Key findings

• Following the Medicare changes, rural, regional and remote areas have experienced an unprecedented surge in bulk billing.
• While regional centres and large-medium rural towns still trail metropolitan areas in overall bulk billing proportions, the gap has closed considerably.
• In all states other than Queensland and Tasmania, fewer than 35% of GP clinics are located outside of the capital cities.
• For any patients not being bulk billed, average out-of-pocket costs remain generally higher outside of our capital cities. This is particularly pronounced in Western Australia.