Healthcare reforms in Australia in 2026 are centred on the multi‑year Strengthening Medicare agenda, record hospital and urgent‑care funding, cheaper medicines, and major workforce and equity initiatives that aim to rebuild primary care as the “front door” of the system. These reforms are being phased in through the 2024–25 and 2025–26 federal budgets and will shape how Australians access GPs, hospitals, medicines, mental‑health services and aged care over the rest of the decade.
Strengthening Medicare: Core Primary Care Reforms
The Strengthening Medicare package is the backbone of healthcare reforms in Australia through to 2026.
The Department of Health’s overview “About the Strengthening Medicare measures” explains that the Government has committed $11.8 billion across the 2022–23, 2023–24 and 2024–25 budgets to Strengthening Medicare, guided by the Strengthening Medicare Taskforce Report and the Primary Health Care 10 Year Plan 2022–2032. Key aims include:
- Reversing declining bulk‑billing rates and improving GP availability.
- Expanding Medicare Urgent Care Clinics (UCCs) to ease pressure on emergency departments.
- Shifting care “out of hospital” by rebuilding primary care as the core of a modern system.
- Improving access for priority groups, including women and people with mental‑health needs.
The 2025–26 Services Australia budget fact sheet “Strengthening Medicare” details specific measures that start or expand in 2026, including more bulk billing, new Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) items, and better support for telehealth and multidisciplinary care.
The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) describes the 2025–26 Budget as a major opportunity to “implement the Strengthening Medicare recommendations” to make general practice more affordable and accessible, and to ensure Australia has enough GPs for the future.
Bulk Billing Expansion and Cheaper Medicines
One of the most visible reforms is the expansion of bulk billing and the reduction of medicine co‑payments.
More bulk billing and new incentives
The Services Australia Strengthening Medicare fact sheet states that from 1 November 2025, bulk‑billing incentives are expanded and increased so that more Australians can be bulk billed at higher rebate levels. These incentives provide additional payments to GPs and nurse practitioners when they bulk bill children under 16 and concession‑card holders for unreferred services, and from late 2025 they also extend to non‑concessional patients, greatly broadening eligibility.
The Department of Health’s Primary care page notes that with expanded eligibility for MBS bulk‑billing incentives, more GPs are bulk billing more services, improving affordability for patients across the country.
ANZ’s Health Check – Budget 2025–26 estimates that around $7.9 billion is allocated to expanded bulk‑billing measures from 1 November 2025, making an additional 15 million Australians eligible for enhanced bulk billing.
Lower PBS co‑payments and women’s health
On medicines, the 2025–26 Budget further cuts out‑of‑pocket costs. The budget health chapter “Health | Budget 2025–26” confirms that:
- The Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) co‑payment cap will be reduced from $31.60 to $25 from 1 January 2026, saving patients more than $200 million annually on medicines.
- Concession co‑payments are frozen at $7.70 until 2030, protecting low‑income patients from price rises.
The same chapter outlines a $792.9 million package for women’s health, which includes 150% larger Medicare rebates and more bulk billing for insertion and removal of long‑acting reversible contraceptives (LARCs), and funding for 8 LARC Centres of Training Excellence to build clinical skills.
The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF) notes that other Medicare reforms include tripling the bulk‑billing incentive, establishing 61 free Medicare Mental Health Centres, and lowering the PBS maximum cost, all of which contribute to improved equity and access.
Medicare Urgent Care Clinics and Hospital Funding
Another major pillar of healthcare reforms in Australia in 2026 is the expansion of Medicare Urgent Care Clinics and record funding for public hospitals.
Medicare Urgent Care Clinics
The budget’s health chapter reports that the Government will invest $644 million to establish a further 50 Medicare Urgent Care Clinics (UCCs) across every state and territory. This builds on 87 existing UCCs, taking the total to 137 clinics nationwide.
- These clinics offer bulk‑billed urgent care for injuries and illnesses that are urgent but not life‑threatening, such as minor fractures, cuts and infections.
- Since they were first established in June 2023, there have been over 1.3 million visits to Medicare UCCs, helping to take pressure off hospital emergency departments.
Patient organisations such as MS Australia note that the Budget’s expansion of UCCs is central to improving timely access to urgent care and reducing ED overcrowding.
Record funding for public hospitals
The same Budget chapter states that the Commonwealth will provide $1.8 billion to fund public hospitals and health services in 2025–26, as part of a broader agreement to increase the Commonwealth contribution to state‑run public hospitals. Key points include:
- The Commonwealth contribution to public hospitals will increase by 12% to reach a record $33.9 billion in 2025–26.
- Funding is targeted at cutting hospital waiting lists, reducing emergency waiting times and managing ambulance ramping.
The Australian Labor Party’s summary of record funding for public hospitals and disability reform emphasises that these reforms are designed to ensure continued access to world‑class care and to stabilise hospital finances as demand rises.
My Medicare, Team‑Based Care and Primary Care Reform
Beyond funding, healthcare reforms in 2026 also change how care is organised, especially in primary care.
The Strengthening Medicare Taskforce identified four priority areas for primary‑care reform: increasing access, encouraging multidisciplinary team‑based care, modernising digital health, and supporting long‑term sustainability.
Eastern Melbourne PHN’s explainer on MyMedicare and Strengthening Medicare summarises key changes:
- MyMedicare – a new voluntary patient registration model that formally links patients to a preferred general practice and regular GP.
- Multidisciplinary, team‑based care – reforms encourage practices to employ or partner with nurses, allied‑health professionals and other team members to provide more holistic, wrap‑around care.
- Digital and telehealth enhancements – updated MBS items and support for telehealth, secure messaging and shared care plans to enable more integrated care.
From 1 March 2026, new and amended MBS listings include patient‑end support items for telehealth consultations that involve more than one provider, reinstating some GP and nurse‑practitioner telehealth services that had ceased in 2022. These changes support team‑based care and specialist collaboration, particularly for complex patients in regional and rural areas.
The RACGP’s pre‑budget submission “Our plan to improve the health of Australia” calls for further implementation of Strengthening Medicare recommendations, including:
- Making general practice more affordable via higher rebates and targeted incentives.
- Expanding research‑informed preventive health, including women’s and children’s health.
- Investing in a flexible and responsive medical workforce, especially in rural and Aboriginal Community‑Controlled sectors.
Workforce Growth and Training Reforms
Healthcare reforms in Australia 2026 also tackle workforce shortages in general practice, nursing and midwifery.
The budget health chapter and commentary from Findex and ANZ describe a significant workforce package:
- GP training expansion – The Government will fund up to 400 new GP training places per year from 2028, with an initial 200 additional GP training places annually starting 2026.
- This is expected to bring the number of doctors entering GP training to over 2,000 per year by 2028, the highest in Australia’s history.
- The package includes salary incentives for junior doctors to choose general practice, plus paid parental leave and study leave for GP registrars.
- Nursing and midwifery scholarships – Around 400 scholarships will support training pathways for new nurse practitioners and endorsed midwives, helping to expand advanced‑practice roles.
GP‑focused analysis by GP Hero, “How 2025 Healthcare Reforms Will Impact Australian GP Clinics”, notes that these workforce measures aim to address critical shortages but also warns that competition for experienced staff will remain strong; clinics will need to focus on retention and professional development.
The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Journal’s summary “ANMF PRIORITIES 2026: Healthcare equity” welcomes expansion of scholarships and expanded roles, while calling for careful implementation to ensure workloads are sustainable and rural communities benefit.
Equity, Mental Health and Priority Populations
Healthcare reforms in 2026 also have a strong equity focus, aiming to improve access and outcomes for women, people with chronic illness, and disadvantaged communities.
The ANMF and MS Australia highlight several key measures:
- Establishment of 61 free Medicare Mental Health Centres, providing walk‑in, no‑cost mental‑health support.
- Expansion of Medicare Urgent Care Clinics and free bulk‑billed services in those settings.
- Women’s health package of $792.9 million, covering larger rebates and bulk billing for LARCs, training centres, and improved access across life stages.
- Lower PBS co‑payments and frozen concession prices benefit people with chronic conditions and lower incomes.
RACGP’s pre‑budget submission backs reforms that prevent health impacts of racism and support Closing the Gap priorities, particularly strengthening Aboriginal Community‑Controlled Health Organisations and building community‑controlled workforce capacity.
The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation’s Healthcare equity statement notes that these reforms are steps in the right direction but calls for further action on staffing levels, aged care, and rural health to truly achieve equitable outcomes.
Implementation Challenges and Evaluation
While many reforms are now funded and in progress, questions remain about implementation and evaluation.
Medical Republic’s article “Strengthening Medicare: implemented but not evaluated” reports that by late 2025, more than half of the 47 reforms promised under the Strengthening Medicare banner had been implemented, but only one had been fully evaluated. It warns that without robust evaluation, it will be hard to know which reforms are delivering the biggest improvements in access, quality and value.
Professional and patient groups have also raised concerns about:
- Whether bulk‑billing incentives will be enough to reverse long‑term declines in bulk billing in all regions.
- Whether new GP training places will translate into enough GPs in outer‑metro, regional and remote areas.
- The need for sustained funding beyond the forward estimates, particularly as population and chronic‑disease burdens grow.
What These Healthcare Reforms Mean for Patients and Providers
For patients, healthcare reforms in Australia 2026 mean:
- More chances to be bulk billed, especially for children, concession‑card holders and, from late 2025, a broader group of Medicare‑eligible patients as incentives expand.
- Cheaper medicines, with PBS co‑payments capped at $25 and concession co‑payments frozen at $7.70.
- More options for urgent care close to home through Medicare UCCs, reducing ED waits for non‑life‑threatening issues.
- Better access to women’s health services, mental‑health centres and telehealth‑supported team care, especially for complex or chronic conditions.
For providers and clinics, these reforms bring:
- New funding streams and incentives for bulk billing, longer consults, women’s health services and team‑based care via MyMedicare.
- Expectations to adapt to multidisciplinary models, digital tools and new MBS items, particularly around telehealth and patient‑end support.
- Opportunities to tap into workforce and training supports for GPs, nurses and midwives, while planning for more complex compliance and reporting linked to new incentives.