Table 2.

COVID-19 Temporary MBS Telehealth Items [83].

Timing	Telehealth items
Stage 1 March 13, 2020	68 new items for consultations between patients and GPs, mental health providers (psychiatrists, psychologists, occupational therapists, social workers) and selected medical specialists, where: •patients or providers were required to self-isolate; or •patients were considered vulnerable (aged over 70 years, indigenous and aged over 50 years, pregnant or a parent of a child under 12 months, immunocompromised, or with a chronic medical condition resulting in increased coronavirus risk) Services must be bulk-billed. Existing bulk-billing incentives are available to offset usual co-payments.
Stage 2 March 16, 2020	24 items added, to include services provided by midwives, obstetricians and nurse practitioners, under Stage 1 conditions (by self-isolating patients & providers, or to vulnerable patients). Changes to existing item descriptors requiring a patient to see their usual GP, and recognising continuity of care provided by a general practice (rather than individual GPs)
Stage 3 March 23, 2020	Existing items extended for use by vulnerable health professionals (subject to item descriptors) for all patient consultations. Vulnerable providers are: •aged over 70 years, indigenous and aged over 50 years, pregnant or a parent of a child under 12 months, immunocompromised, or with a chronic medical condition resulting in increased coronavirus risk) Bulk-billing requirement maintained although becoming contentious.
Stage 4 March 30, 2020	130 new items added - removing vulnerability provisions and extending telehealth services to all Australians by an extended range of eligible medical and allied health providers. Bulk-billing requirements removed for some services and bulk-billing incentives doubled for GPs and other medical practitioners. Practice Incentive Program Quality Improvement (PIP-QI) payments doubled over next 2 quarters for practices who remain open for 4 h / day or 50% of normal opening hours. [84]
Stage 5a April 6, 2020	22 new items added, extending to include services provided by consultant physicians, geriatricians, and psychiatrists.
Stage 5b April 20, 2020	28 new items added, including services for group psychotherapy, public health physicians, neurosurgery and chronic disease management by nurses and indigenous health workers. Bulk-billing requirements removed for medical specialist and allied health service providers. GPs and some other medical providers remain legislatively required to bulk-bill concession card holders, children under 16 and vulnerable patients. 2 new bulk-billing incentives introduced for vulnerable patients.
Stage 6 May 22, 2020	9 new items added for services provided by anaesthetists, dentists (oral and maxillofacial surgery), and group dietetic services.
Stage 7 July 20, 2020	Items for GPs and other medical practitioners (OMPs) working in general practice restricted to patients where there is an existing relationship. This means a face to face service in the last 12 months, provided by the practitioner or another practitioner in the same practice, or by an affiliated practice if the practitioner is part of an Approved Medical Deputising Service. Exemptions apply to children under 12 months of age, people who are homeless, patients living in COVID-19 impacted areas, urgent after-hours services, and patients at Aboriginal Medical Services (AMS) and Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (ACCHO) services.
August 7, 2020	Additional 10 individual psychological therapy sessions made available to eligible people under existing Better Access program; can be delivered via face to face or telehealth.
Extension October 1, 2020	Temporary telehealth items continued for a further 6 months until March 31, 2021 as part of extension to national COVID-19 health emergency response. GPs no longer required to bulk-bill patients and additional temporary bilk-billing incentives (See Stage 4) discontinued.