More than 40 percent of Victorian GPs bulk bill, but at what cost?

The initial response to the Federal Government’s extra subsidies to GPs who provide bulk billing has been positive. But is it the panacea GPs need?

Matthew Sims
January 12, 2026

Victorians are now twice as likely to find a bulk billing GP compared to last year, according to the newest annual report from online healthcare directory Cleanbill.

But as GP clinics struggle to balance their bottom lines, is enough being done to ensure a high quality of care?

What is “bulk billing”? Bulk billing is a service provided by some GP clinics where all charges are put through Medicare, with no out-of-pocket charges required from the person attending the GP clinic.

More free visits: Published on Monday, Cleanbill’s fourth annual Blue Report highlighted that 701 – or 43.6 percent – of Victorian GP clinics said they offered bulk billing to all clients – more than double of last year’s figure of 302.

How we got here: Launching in 2022, Cleanbill is an independent healthcare directory. Its work involves researchers phoning and surveying every GP clinic in the country on their billing practices. The latest “Blue Report” covers the period from November 1 to mid-December.

November prediction: 16 new bulk billing clinics for the eastern suburbs

Bulk billing GPs will be paid 12.5 percent more.

Are federal incentives enough? In November, the Federal Government introduced subsidies for clinics that bulk bill every patient.

Bulk billing clinics are eligible to earn an extra 12.5 percent on the current Medicare rebate paid by the government, while clinics in more remote locations receive more – up to about 190% of the Medicare subsidy received by metropolitan GP clinics.

Long term uptake: Cleanbill founder and chief executive, James Gillespie, said it was uncertain how many would continue to use the new incentives in the long term.

🗣️“Often, clinics would advise us that…they're only doing it for six to 12 months to determine what the effect will be on their bottom line and they may yet switch back if the effect isn't what they want to see,” Gillespie told the Eastern Melburnian.

Costs on the rise: According to the report, the average cost for people visiting GPs in Victoria was $48.18 – a 14.7 percent jump compared to the average charge of $42.01 the year prior.

Gillespie said this was increasing because GP clinics that do not bulk bill have seen little to no change to their bottom line.

“As a result, a lot of those GP clinics have continued to increase their out-of-pocket costs,” said Gillespie.

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Minister’s rebuttal: Federal Health Minister Mark Butler told the Guardian Cleanbill’s data “cannot be relied upon and should not be reported as accurate”, citing the fact they did not include clinics which did not respond to the survey.

Responding to these claims, Gillespie said he believed people could rely on Cleanbill’s data because it was publicly available.

🗣️”They're able to verify it themselves by going on the Cleanbill directory,” Gillespie said.

Quantity over quality: Caroline Johnson, who works in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs as a GP and is an Associate Professor at the University of Melbourne, said many clinics that spent longer with their patients and saw fewer patients were not able to justify bulk billing.

🗣️“You've already created a strong financial disincentive to spend more time with the patient,” said Johnson.