Australians will be able to continue to access Medicare-subsidised telehealth services until the end of the year, with the Federal Government set to include a six-month extension in May’s budget.
The Government rapidly rolled out telehealth subsidies in March 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic struck, so Australians could continue to access GP, mental health and allied health services during lockdowns.
The Medicare arrangements were due to end on June 30, but Health Minister Greg Hunt will now extend those until the end of the year, while the Government works with peak bodies to design a post-pandemic telehealth system.
In the year to the end of March, more than 54 million Medicare-subsidised telehealth services were delivered to 13.5 million patients.
