“All you need is your Medicare card, not your credit card,” declared Dr Mike Freelander.
And in Macarthur, the numbers now back him up.
A record jump in bulk billing has swept across the region, with 41 Medicare Bulk Billing Practices now operating locally, up from just 26 before the Federal Government’s major Medicare overhaul.
That means 91 per cent of all GP clinics in Macarthur are now bulk billing.
Dr Freelander said the milestone delivers on why he entered politics.
“I entered Parliament to improve healthcare access and affordability, and I am proud to say that this is what our Labor Government is doing,” he said.
Across New South Wales, bulk billing rates have climbed to 85.3 per cent, with 1,326 registered bulk billing practices as of 31 January 2026.
Nationally, the rate has surged to 81.4 per cent, the largest quarterly increase in two decades outside the COVID pandemic.
Health Minister Mark Butler said Australians are already feeling the shift.
“More Australians are finding it easier to find a bulk billing doctor right across the country including in Macarthur,” he said.
The rise follows the Government’s $8.5 billion investment to strengthen Medicare, including tripling incentives for GPs who bulk bill children under 16 and concession card holders.
Since those changes in October 2023, more than nine in 10 visits for those patients are now bulk billed.
For 16 to 64 year olds, bulk billing has jumped 6.9 percentage points in just three months, the biggest quarterly leap on record.
Today, 96 per cent of Australians live within a 20-minute drive of a registered Medicare Bulk Billing Practice.
“Our record investment to strengthen Medicare has already been a game changer with more practices switching to bulk billing since November 1,” Member for Werriwa Anne Stanley said.
For local families, the message is simple: your Medicare card is once again your ticket to affordable care.
