Do I need a GP review after 6 psychology sessions?
Yes. Under the Better Access initiative, a Mental Health Treatment Plan referral covers a course of treatment of up to 6 sessions. After the sixth session your psychologist reports back to your GP, and the GP must review your plan before referring you for the remaining sessions. The annual limit is 10 individual Medicare-rebated sessions per calendar year.
Medicare Benefits Schedule, items 80010 and 80110 and explanatory notes (MBS Online)
MBS Online, Changes to the Better Access initiative from 1 November 2025
Department of Health, Disability and Ageing, Better Access initiative
Services Australia, Mental health care and Medicare
How courses of treatment work
The Medicare Benefits Schedule items for psychological therapy and focussed psychological strategies are built around courses of treatment. The first referral can be for a maximum of 6 services. At the end of the course the psychologist writes to the referring practitioner about the assessment, the treatment provided and recommendations for future care. The referrer then reviews whether further treatment is needed. If it is, they issue a new referral for the remaining sessions, which is usually 4, up to the calendar year cap of 10 individual services. Medicare will not pay for a seventh session on the first referral.
What the review looks like now
Until 1 November 2025 GPs claimed a specific plan review item, item 2712. That item has been removed. GPs now conduct the review in an ordinary consultation and bill the time-tiered general attendance item that fits the appointment length. The review must be done by your usual GP or a GP at your MyMedicare registered practice. The GP checks your progress against the goals in the plan, updates the plan if needed and writes a new referral. Your psychologist cannot issue the referral themselves. Book the review before your sixth session so there is no gap in treatment.
Sessions across calendar years
The 10 session cap resets on 1 January each year, but a referral does not expire at the end of the year. If you have used 4 of the 6 sessions on a referral by December, the remaining 2 can be used in January and they count towards the new year's cap. You still need a review after the sixth session of that course. If your plan was prepared some time ago, your GP may also decide a fresh plan is clinically appropriate, but Medicare does not require a new plan every year. Group sessions have a separate cap of 10 and do not reduce your individual sessions.
Practical tips
Keep a note of how many rebated sessions you have used, because the count is across all providers, not per psychologist. Ask the practice to check your Medicare history if you are unsure. If you changed GPs, make sure the new GP is your usual practitioner or you are registered with the practice under MyMedicare before the review. If you need more than 10 sessions in a year, talk to your GP about other options such as private health extras, a workplace program, or community mental health services. These rules apply nationally, because Medicare is a Commonwealth program.
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