Live: Bulk-billing rates on the rise

live Federal politics live: Government says more Australians seeing GP for free as bulk-billing rates rise The federal government says the number of Australians seeing a GP for free is on the rise. Follow all the updates in our live blog. Submit a comment or question Live updates Mon 10 Aug 2026 at 7:07am Free GP visits on the rise Bulk billing rates continue to rise as a result of the federal GP subsidy scheme. New government figures show rates increased from 81.9 per cent to 84.1 per cent nationwide in the June quarter. The federal government committed $8.5 billion at the May election to expand bulk billing rates, promising to make nine out of 10 GP visits free for patients by 2030. The Northern Territory has since seen the biggest jump, an annual rise of 13 per cent, bringing rates to 90.8 per cent. New South Wales and Victorian rates remain highest, 87.5 per cent and 85.7 per cent, while the ACT trails on 59.3 per cent. Mon 10 Aug 2026 at 6:48am Good morning 👋 Hi friends, welcome to our politics live blog. I'm Courtney Gould from the ABC's Parliament House team, here to guide you through the day. It's been a long time since we last chatted, so I hope you have had a lovely winter so far. What's on the agenda today? Well, politicians are starting to make their way back to the capital ahead of parliament returning tomorrow. The government is hoping it can find a friend within the parliament to pass its long-awaited gambling reforms. Also on the to-do list is to pass its NDIS reforms. You might remember that the reforms were pushed off until after the mid-winter break. We're expecting an inquiry that met during the break to report back later this week. Are you ready to dive in? Let's get blogging. Loading