Mental health services

Read the relevant item descriptions, fact sheets and explanatory notes on MBS Online.

The Better Access initiative gives eligible patients access to selected mental health treatment services.

Each calendar year, patients can claim Medicare benefits for up to 10 individual and 10 group therapy mental health treatment services.

To get these services, patients must have a clinically diagnosed mental disorder, that requires at least a moderate level of support, and one of the following:

• referral from a general practitioner (GP) or prescribed medical practitioner (PMP) as part of a Mental Health Treatment Plan (MHTP)
• referral as part of a psychiatrist assessment and management plan (PAMP)
• direct referral from a psychiatrist or paediatrician.

Eligible providers of mental health treatment services include:

• GPs
• PMPs
• clinical psychologists
• registered psychologists
• social workers
• occupational therapists.

Learn more about the Better Access initiative on the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing website.

Confirming mental health items and limits

Use the MBS items online checker in Health Professional Online Services (HPOS) to:

• check a patient’s eligibility for an MBS item based on their MBS history
• check if you’re eligible to claim an MBS item
• check claiming conditions for MBS items.

You can call us to check:

• if a patient has claimed a MHTP, PAMP or an eligible service from a psychiatrist or paediatrician
• how many mental health treatment services a patient has already claimed in the calendar year.

Billing mental health treatment plan (MHTP) services

You can bill MHTP items if you’re the patient’s usual medical practitioner, or a GP or PMP at the general practice they’re enrolled for MyMedicare.

The patient doesn’t need to have an existing MyMedicare registration to access MHTP services. A patient registered with MyMedicare is eligible for longer telehealth general attendance items from their registered practice.

A patient can only claim a Medicare benefit if they meet the eligibility and referral requirements outlined in the Better Access Initiative on MBS Online.

These services can be provided by telehealth if appropriate, and if, the eligibility requirements are met. Read more about Telehealth MBS items.

Prepare a mental health treatment plan

Use this table to find the relevant MBS items for GPs and PMPs who prepare a MHTP for an eligible patient.

You should treat a patient’s MHTP as a living document and review and update it as required. Only prepare a new plan when clinically required, and generally not within 12 months of a previous plan unless exceptional circumstances exist.

Read more about the requirements of a MHTP in Mental Health Treatment Plans and Consultation on MBS Online.

Review a mental health treatment plan

GPs and PMPs can use time-tiered professional (general) attendance items to:

• review a patient’s MHTP
• refer a patient with a MHTP for mental health treatment services
• provide ongoing management of a patient’s mental health condition.

Reviews should not occur more than once every 3 months, or within 4 weeks of a MHTP being prepared, unless there are exceptional circumstances. Typically, patients need no more than 2 reviews each calendar year.

Focused psychological strategies (FPS) services

Use this table to find the relevant MBS items eligible GPs and PMPs can bill for FPS services for a patient with a MHTP.

GPs and PMPs must have the appropriate training recognised by the General Practice Mental Health Standards Collaboration.

These items can be claimed up to 10 times each calendar year and count towards the patient’s Better Access limit for individual services.

Allied mental health treatment services

Eligible allied health professionals must both:

• meet the qualification requirements outlined in Schedule 1 of the Health Insurance (Section 3C General Medical Services – Allied Health and other Primary Health Care Services) Determination 2024
• have a Medicare provider number.

Individual mental health treatment services

This table shows which MBS items eligible allied health professionals can bill for individual mental health treatment services.

Group psychological therapy treatment services

Use this table to find the MBS items eligible allied health professionals can bill for group psychological therapy services involving 4 to 10 patients.

Eligible allied health professionals can only deliver group psychological therapy video services to patients in Modified Monash Model areas 4 to 7, and only in certain circumstances.

Learn more about group psychological therapy services on MBS Online.

Better Access services for family and carer participation

Under Better Access services, eligible health professionals can provide a maximum of 2 services per calendar year to a patient’s family member or carer. Eligible health professionals include:

• GPs
• PMPs
• clinical psychologists
• registered psychologists
• occupational therapists
• social workers.

You can provide these Better Access services to a family member or carer, if the:

• patient has been referred for Better Access mental health treatment services as part of a MHTP, PAMP or direct referral from a psychiatrist or paediatrician
• treating or referring practitioner determines it is clinically appropriate
• patient consents to their family member or carer receiving the service as part of their treatment
• service is part of the patient’s treatment
• patient isn’t in attendance.

Eligible health professionals can use these items for a patient’s family member or carer. These items:

• must be claimed under the patient’s Medicare number
• count towards the patient’s Better Access calendar year limit for individual services
• cannot be used to treat the patient’s family member or carer for a mental health condition.

Use this table to find the MBS items eligible health professionals can bill for a patient’s family member or carer.

Mental health case conferences

A patient is eligible and can access mental health case conference (MHCC) services if they’re being managed under either:

• the Better Access initiative for mental health
• an eating disorder treatment and management plan.

The table shows the relevant MBS items for MHCC services.

Learn more about mental health case conferencing items on MBS Online.