The crisis in bulk-billing is widening the gap in access to medical services between people living in the city and country, forcing people in some regional centres to wait up to eight weeks for a doctor’s appointment, while new patients are turned away. A freeze in the Medicare rebate for the past decade has meant GP clinics can no longer afford to bulk-bill, leaving some patients unable to secure an appointment and thousands of others forced to drive long distances seeking affordable care.
Gap in bulk-billing services between city and country now a chasm
