The Better Access program will be undergoing a number of changes from 1 November.
The items covering GP Mental Health Treatment Plan review and mental health consultation items will be ditched from November, with GPs advised to use time-tiered consult items instead.
The GP Mental Health Treatment Plan preparation item (2715) will remain. The MBS schedule fee for item 2715 is $106.20, and allows for a consult between 20 minutes and 40 minutes in duration.
At the same time, the preparation of a Mental Health Treatment Plan and associated referrals will be linked to either a patient’s MyMedicare registered practice or their usual GP, according to a fact sheet released by the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing this week.
A patient’s usual GP is defined as being the practitioner who has provided the majority of services to a person over the past 12 months or who is likely to provide the majority of services over the next 12 months.
Patients will not have to be registered with MyMedicare in order to access a mental health treatment plan.
Nor will patients who are registered with MyMedicare necessarily have to go to their MyMedicare-registered practice to access a mental health treatment plan.
“It is important to note that patients can choose to see their usual medical practitioner irrespective of their existing MyMedicare registered status,” the fact sheet reads.
“This is because patients may choose to seek mental health support through a separate GP or [prescribed medical practitioner] for a wide variety of reasons, and these changes will not impact the ability for patients to continue to do this.
“For example, if a patient is registered with a MyMedicare practice but wishes to see a GP at another practice (e.g. a headspace GP) as they consider them to be their ‘usual medical practitioner’ for their mental health support needs, there is nothing precluding the patient from doing so because of the changes coming in to affect [sic].”
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Instead, it appears that the rule change is more geared toward ensuring that opportunistic providers don’t provide the comparatively expensive care planning items to patients they don’t intend to see again.
This rationale has already been attributed by some GPs to the move to tie MyMedicare registrations to chronic disease planning items.
Changes to Better Access were initially flagged in the May 2024 budget.
This original announcement did not necessarily mention that items would be removed.
“GPs will be able to use standard consultation items to review mental health treatment plans and deliver mental health care, instead of having to use dedicated GP mental health Medicare items,” the May 2024 announcement said.
“The Mental Health Treatment Planning items will remain available for GPs to use.”
An RACGP spokesperson told The Medical Republic that it had been consulting closely with the department and providing feedback on proposed changes.
“The work continues, and we look forward to the Department providing us with more information and keeping us advised on all communications concerning changes to the scheme, including fact sheets,” the spokesperson said.
“It’s vital that GPs are central to this process, as we’re the ones who facilitate access to potentially life-saving care by coordinating the referrals to mental health services, which enables patients to receive much-needed psychological services and other support.”
The DoHDA is also reportedly in the final stages of developing guidance materials on alternative government-funded mental health supports.
“GPs … will be encouraged to refer patients who require at least a moderate level of support for Better Access treatment services and, where psychological intervention under the Better Access initiative is not appropriate, to consider other interventions or pathways,” the new fact sheet reads.
These changes are scheduled for 1 November 2025, the same day that the government’s two new bulk billing incentive programs go live.
The date for the Better Access changes were set in 2024, before the bulk billing PIP and extended bulk billing incentive were but a twinkle in Mark Butler’s eye.
