The BetterBilling Blog

The 1 November MBS changes bring something genuinely new: the Medicare Healthy Kids Check, a dedicated developmental health assessment for 3-year-olds under the Thriving Kids initiative. Who it's for: children aged 3 — a once-off assessment per child. Not available for children under 3 or over 4, so the window is narrow and worth flagging in your recall system. A child who needs more than one assessment around that age uses standard attendance items for the extra visits. How

From 1 November 2026, chronic condition management plans can be prepared and reviewed over the phone for the first time, through four new MBS items. For patients who need a plan but can't easily attend, it's one of the most practical changes in a while. The four new items: 92033 — GP, phone preparation of a chronic condition management plan. 92034 — GP, phone review of a plan. 92063 — prescribed medical practitioner, phone preparation. 92064 — prescribed medical practitioner,

Many GPs undercharge out of guilt. How to set private fees that reflect your work, explain them clearly and keep patients' trust. One of the most common things I hear from GPs isn't a billing question at all. It's a feeling: "I feel bad charging patients." I understand it. We went into medicine to help people, and money can feel like it gets in the way of that. But I've seen what happens when that guilt drives the fee schedule: GPs who are exhausted, underpaid, and eventually

How GPs can bill perimenopause and menopause care compliantly with MBS item 695, chronic condition plans and LARC, with a free template. World Menopause Day is on 18 October. It's a good moment to ask an honest question: is your practice set up to provide, and be paid for, good menopause care? Women in perimenopause and menopause often arrive with a long list: hot flushes, sleep, mood, cycles, bone health, cardiovascular risk, sexual health, contraception. Trying to cover tha

Most under-billing isn't a knowledge problem. The gap is memory and friction: on a full list, it's hard to recall exactly what to claim and what to document to back it up. The way you close that gap is tools. A cheat sheet, for the "what to claim" — A one-page MBS cheat sheet keeps the items you actually use, the co-claiming rules, and the commonly-missed ones within arm's reach. It turns "I think there's an item for this" into a two-second glance. Autofills, for the "how to

Ask most GPs why they don’t bill an item they’re entitled to and the honest answer is rarely “I didn’t know about it.” It’s “I wasn’t confident my notes would back it up.” That instinct is a good one — billing should always be defensible. The problem isn’t the caution. It’s that good documentation is treated as extra work instead of the default. The real barrier isn’t knowledge — it’s friction When claiming an item correctly means stopping to remember exactly what needs to be

Most GPs are sitting on income they’ve genuinely earned but never billed. Not because they’re careless — because the work happens in the room, the patient walks out, and the eligible item quietly never gets claimed. Over a week that’s a handful of items. Over a year it’s a serious number. The MBS Billing Health Check is how we find it. What it is — and what it isn’t The MBS Billing Health Check is a done-for-you review of one week of your consulting. We go through it patient

Residential aged care facility (RACF) work is some of the most demanding work a GP does — and some of the most inconsistently billed. The rules feel scattered, the items overlap, and it's hard to know what you can claim, when, and how to keep it defensible. Our Aged Care Billing for GPs course was built to fix exactly that. It's a practical, MBS-grounded course covering the seven core building blocks of a structured RACF practice. Each module follows the same clear format: an

Most GPs assume that earning more means working more: longer days, fuller books, more patients through the door. But the GPs who get the most out of BetterBilling rarely add a single appointment. Instead, they get paid properly for the work that's already happening in their practice every day. Here are the three shifts that make the biggest difference. 1. Understanding why and when to do GP chronic condition management plans Chronic condition management is one of the most und

Since the introduction of the Menopause and Perimenopause Health Assessment (item 695), one of the most common questions I receive is: "How are you actually using it in practice?" The answer is probably less complicated than you think. Not Every Menopausal Patient Needs a 695 The first mistake many practices make is assuming every menopause consultation should become a health assessment. That's not the purpose of the item. Many patients simply require a standard consultation

One of the most practical changes to MBS item 10997 isn't about who can receive the service or how many can be claimed. It's about supervision. The MBS now clearly states that the supervising medical practitioner does not need to be physically present with the nurse providing the service. Instead, "supervision at a distance" is acceptable. What Does This Mean? If a practice nurse is providing a clinically relevant 10997 service, the supervising GP: Does not need to be in the

Telehealth billing is still one of the most misunderstood areas in general practice. And the same myths keep coming up — even in well-run clinics. Let's clear a few up. MYTH 1: YOU CAN'T SPLIT BILL TELEHEALTH ITEMS This isn't true. You can bill: • A general attendance • And a sexual health/reproductive health (SHR/BBV) item …as long as: ✔ Both services are clinically relevant ✔ Both meet their criteria ✔ Both are clearly documented The issue isn't the combination — it's wheth