The state claims its payroll tax solution has saved $4 million for clinics which bulk bill a certain proportion of patients.
Eight months into its payroll tax semi-exemption for general practice and the NSW government has declared victory, predicting that the number of clinics participating in the scheme will only increase.
Under the Bulk-Billing Support Initiative, GP clinics in metropolitan Sydney that bulk bill more than 80% of services and GP clinics in the rest of the state that bulk bill more than 70% of services are eligible for a rebate.
That rebate is equal to the difference between the total amount of payroll tax owed if payments to contractor GPs were counted as wages and the amount of payroll tax owed if payments to contractor GPs were removed.
“What we can tell you today is that … $74.1 million has been paid to GPs without having to pay payroll tax,” Finance Minister Courtney Houssos told media today.
“That’s resulted in $4 million worth of savings for GP clinics right across New South Wales, giving them the ability to provide more bulk-billed appointments for the community.”
Ms Houssos said she expected more clinics to register for the initiative before the end of the financial year.
The Medical Republic has asked Ms Houssos’ office for figures on how many of the 2300 GP clinics have signed up for the rebate scheme.
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According to the most recent Medicare statistics, which capture July to December 2024, the bulk-billing rate for GP non-referred attendances in NSW was 82.1%; the highest of any state or territory.
Within the state, the Northern Sydney Primary Health Network area GP bulk-billing rate was the lowest, at 70.9%, followed by Hunter New England and Central Coast PHN on 73.2% and Central and Eastern Sydney PHN and South Eastern NSW PHN on 77.4%.
All non-metro PHNs had GP bulk-billing rates above the 70% threshold for the tax rebate scheme, while two of the four Sydney-based PHNs fell below the 80% metropolitan threshold.
With the exception of South Western Sydney PHN and Western Sydney PHN, which are notably cheaper, the average out-of-pocket cost for a GP consult in NSW is about $46.
Health minister Ryan Park estimated that a 1% decrease in GP bulk billing equated to around 3000 extra emergency department presentations.
“What we’re focused on trying to do here is make sure that we support bulk billing in the community to take pressure off our emergency departments and make our GP practices sustainable going forward,” he said.
In NSW, only clinics that spend more than $1.2 million on wages or payments to contractor GPs working under a relevant contract are required to pay payroll tax.
Those wishing to participate in the rebate scheme must register with the state revenue office.
It’s worth noting that there are approved exemptions for GPs working under a relevant contract and that some tenant doctor models may be structured in such a way as to avoid GPs being deemed as working under a relevant contract.
