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Bulk-billing rate drops below 21 per cent, increasing costs for Australians

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Australia’s bulk-billing rate has dropped to 20.7 per cent in early 2025, down from 35.7 per cent two years ago, according to healthcare directory service Cleanbill.

Rising costs and the complexity of care have forced many GP clinics to stop bulk billing, leaving patients with higher out-of-pocket expenses averaging 43-dollars-38 per visit.

Tasmania has the highest average cost at 54-dollars-26, and no clinics offering bulk billing for new adult patients without concessions.

About 1.5 million Australians reportedly avoided seeing a doctor due to costs, exacerbating health inequalities.

Wealthier patients maintained routine care, while others faced lower-quality services at bulk-billing centres.

Health Minister Mark Butler defended Medicare funding, citing a 77.2 per cent bulk-billing rate for individual visits, and increased incentives for concession holders.

Critics, including the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, argued that Medicare underfunding remains a major issue, urging further investment to prevent worsening health outcomes and higher hospital costs.

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The passport processing headache greeting Australian travellers

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Issues continue with the national SmartGate passport processing system, resulting in long queues at Sydney and Melbourne airports, with ongoing failures increasingly impacting travellers and frustrating industry stakeholders.

The technology, designed to streamline border clearance, has faced technical faults and delays since its rollout in 2015, despite a ballooning budget now exceeding 120 million dollars.

New figures have shown that only 57 per cent of inbound passengers use SmartGates, falling short of the Government’s original 90 per cent target.

Industry leaders, including the Australian Airports Association, have called for urgent improvements as congestion worsens.

Issues have also compounded as staffing levels at processing desks have reduced.

While international hubs like Singapore have reduced clearance times to 10 seconds, Australia’s average is 72 seconds, excluding queuing times.

As the country aims to welcome a record number of international passenger numbers by 2030, stakeholders have increasingly called for government action to modernise the system.

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Five bucks an hour may solve crisis in disability care

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The Health Services Union is calling on the Federal Government to approve a five dollar per hour wage increase to address a critical shortage of disability care workers.

The call comes as Australia faces a shortfall of 100,000 positions, with one-in-four disability workers planning to leave the sector.

The growing demand for National Disability Insurance Scheme services, coupled with high emotional burnout and limited career development, has created an increasingly difficult environment for people relying on disability support.

Union secretary Lloyd Williams noted that without urgent intervention, care quality would continue to decline.

The proposed pay rise, which would cost 900 million dollars over three years, would aim to improve staffing, supervision, and working conditions.

The union argued that disability workers must be fairly rewarded, similar to recent pay increases for aged care and childcare staff.

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Health review recommends abortion access to over 900 practitioners

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A NSW Health review has recommended allowing endors

ed midwives and nurse practitioners to prescribe the MS-2 Step for early-term abortions, expanding access to over 900 practitioners.

The move would align NSW with Queensland, WA, and the ACT, which all updated laws after national regulations changed in 2023.

University of Sydney researcher Anna Noonan warned that the plan lacked urgency and remained fragmented.

She also highlighted concerns over conscientious objectors limiting access, especially in rural areas.

The review urged better awareness of practitioner rights and patient care obligations.

The NSW government is set to consider the recommendations.

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