20 April 2020 News - Changes to COVID-19 services

Changes to bulk billing arrangements (for specialists and allied health) and two new bulk billing incentives items

Page last updated: 20 April 2020

From 20 April 2020:

Bulk-billing:
Specialists and allied health providers are no longer required to bulk-bill COVID-19 telehealth (video conference) and telephone consultations where the service is provided to a concessional or vulnerable patient or a child under 16. Specialists and allied health providers may continue their usual billing practices.

GPs and Other Medical Practitioners must continue to bulk-bill the COVID-19 telehealth and telephone consultation services where the service is provided to a concessional or vulnerable patient or a child under 16 at the time the service is provided. For all other patients, these services may be bulk-billed.

Bulk-billing incentives items:
Bulk-billing incentives items are currently available for medical services for patients who are either under 16 years old, or who are a concessional beneficiary (items 10990, 10991 and 10992).

Two new bulk-billing incentive items are now available where a medical service is provided to a vulnerable patient:
- item 10981 mirrors the current item 10990 metropolitan
- item 10982 mirrors the current item 10991 regional

The new bulk-billing incentive items 10981 and 10982 can be claimed with face-to-face attendances or with the new COVID-19 telehealth and telephone services, where the conditions of the bulk-billing incentives are met.

New telehealth items:
24 new telehealth items are now available for specialists: six new items for consultant psychiatrists (mirroring the existing items 342, 344 and 346), eight new items for public health physicians (mirroring items 410, 411, 412 and 413) and 10 new items for neurosurgeons (mirroring items 6007, 6009, 6011, 6013 and 6015)
4 new telehealth items are now available for a practice nurse or an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health practitioner (mirroring items 10987 and 10997)

The XML can be downloaded from the April Downloads page.

The complete list of telehealth items is available on the COVID-19 news page.


SPECIALIST, CONSULTANT PHYSICIAN AND PSYCHIATRIST ATTENDANCES for COVID-19 (these items are included in numerical order in the table of Specialists items on the COVID-19 news page)

These services are for non-admitted patients

Consultant psychiatrist

* Group psychotherapy of not less than 1 hour (2-9 unrelated patients or a family group of more than 3 patients)
342
92455
92495
* Group psychotherapy of not less than 1 hour (family group of 3 patients)
344
92456
92496
* Group psychotherapy of not less than 1 hour (family group of 2 patients)
346
92457
92497

PUBLIC HEALTH PHYSICIAN ATTENDANCES for COVID-19

These services are for non-admitted patients

ServiceExisting Items face to faceCOVID-19 Telehealth items
video-conference
COVID-19 Telephone items – for when video-conferencing is not available
* Public health physician, Level A, simple and straightforward
410
92513
92521
* Public health physician, Level B, less than 20 minutes
411
92514
92522
* Public health physician, Level C, lasting at least 20 minutes
412
92515
92523
* Public health physician, Level D, lasting at least 40 minutes
413
92516
92524
        NEUROSURGERY ATTENDANCES for COVID-19

        These services are for non-admitted patients

        ServiceExisting Items face to faceCOVID-19 Telehealth items
        video-conference
        COVID-19 Telephone items – for when video-conferencing is not available
        * Neurosurgeon, initial attendance
        6007
        92610
        92617
        * Neurosurgeon, minor attendance
        6009
        92611
        92618
        * Neurosurgeon, subsequent attendance, 15 - 30 minutes
        6011
        92612
        92619
        * Neurosurgeon, subsequent attendance, 30 - 45 minutes
        6013
        92613
        92620
        * Neurosurgeon, subsequent attendance, more than 45 minutes
        6015
        92614
        92621
        ATTENDANCES for COVID-19 Services Provided By A Practice Nurse Or Aboriginal And Torres Strait Islander Health Practitioner On Behalf Of A Medical Practitioner

        These services are for non-admitted patients

        Existing Items face to faceCOVID-19 Telehealth items
        video-conference
        COVID-19 Telephone items – for when video-conferencing is not available
        * Follow up service for an Indigenous person who has received a health assessment
        10987
        93200
        93202
        * Service provided to a person with a chronic disease
        10997
        93201
        93203