Asthma reform blueprint for longer GP visits
The Future of Asthma group has launched a reform blueprint for asthma management, authored with involvement from RACGPs respiratory medicine specialists led by Dr Kerry Hancock. It argues Australia’s...
Racgp
RACGP to lead urgent care standards and $1.8b funding
The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners will steer the development of a nationally consistent urgent care standard. This follows the federal government confirming urgent care clinics wil...
Payroll tax pain threatens Victorian GP clinics
The RACGP Victoria chair Dr Anita Muñoz warned after the state budget that payroll tax pressures are pushing GP clinics toward closure. She noted ongoing investment in healthcare is welcome but cannot...
RACGP to set urgent care standards as UCCs go permanent
The RACGP will develop profession-led standards for nationally consistent urgent care as Medicare urgent care centres become a permanent feature of Australia’s health system. The move follows federal...
Doctors on social media face AHPRA risk
In 2026 more doctors are using social media to educate, advocate and connect, but online activity remains subject to professional standards. The author warns that social platforms are public, permanen...
ChatGPT for Clinicians released in US for free
OpenAI has launched ChatGPT for Clinicians in the United States as a free option for now, pitched as a secure clinical reasoning partner that draws on trusted medical sources to help with patient cons...
RACGP seeks $20m for child health checks
The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners has outlined funding requests ahead of the 2026–27 Federal Budget. It is asking for a $20 million federal investment in 2026–27 and $160.4 million...
GP inclusion in data governance uncertain RACGP
Work on the national primary care data collection has begun, but the RACGP is pushing back on how much influence general practice will have in the data governance framework. The plan would assemble a...
Urgent care clinics receive extra $1.8b over five years
The government has confirmed a further $1.8 billion over five years from 2025–26 to keep urgent care clinics open, with $525.6 million a year from 2030–31. The UCC network has grown to about 135 clini...
VAD access in aged care: 73% lack clear access
Go Gentle Australia released its annual report card Voluntary Assisted Dying in Residential Aged Care Homes, examining 70 of Australia’s largest aged care providers across about 130 000 beds. The stud...
Urgent care clinics get $1.8bn budget boost
Urgent care clinics will become a permanent pillar of Medicare after the government announced a funding package worth $1.8 billion over five years from 2025-26, with ongoing funding above $525 million...
Bulk billing incentives favour male GPs on income gains
Healthed conducted a survey of almost 400 GPs who moved to universal bulk billing after the government’s new incentives last year. Among respondents, 1% of male GPs said their personal income had sign...
GP supervision funding gap risks trainee pipeline
GP supervision is the missing piece in the funding package. The government committed about $8.3 billion to bulk billing the PIP and expanding incentives, plus $607 million to grow the GP workforce. Al...
GPs drive flu vaccine uptake as 2026 vaccine rolls out
The 2026 influenza vaccine is now available to Australian adults and children aged six months and older. For the first time, a needle-free option, FluMist, is part of the rollout. FluMist is free for...
Major depressive disorder peaks 8.3% postpartum
A landmark study led by the University of Queensland analysed data from more than two million women and girls aged 10–59 across 90 countries to measure major depressive disorder in the peripartum peri...
PBAC reverses plan to cut GP eye-drop prescribing
In March the PBAC reversed its November plan to remove GP prescribing rights for preservative-free eye drops. The decision followed opposition from the RACGP, which argued access would be hardest in r...
RACGP seeks REC–SGP nominations by 29 May
The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners is inviting member nominations for a vacancy on the RACGP Expert Committee – Standards for General Practices (REC–SGP). Expressions of interest sh...
RACGP WA seeks after-hours GP funding ahead of Budget
RACGP WA has submitted a policy package ahead of the state May Budget, urging more support for after-hours general practice. The RACGP WA faculty held a round-table with Libby Mettam, WA’s Deputy Lead...
Trachoma eliminated in Australia after WHO validation
The World Health Organization validated Australia as having eliminated trachoma as a public health problem. The milestone follows years of community-led work, with trachoma prevalence in at-risk Abori...
GPs under NDIS push for recognition as specialists
GPs under NDIS are pressuring for formal recognition as medical specialists within the disability scheme. The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners lodged a submission with the joint stand...