A medical practice membership charges patients a recurring fee for access benefits such as a capped patient list, same-day appointments, care-team messaging and an annual health review. In Australia, a clinic can't charge a membership or registration fee to guarantee bulk-billed services. Membership models suit privately billing practices, non-Medicare services and employer health programs, priced around GP capacity.
Key takeaways
- Australia's health department says an annual administration or registration fee can't be charged to guarantee bulk billing.
- Cleanbill found 98 clinics charging such fees in 2024, averaging A$77.94 a year, before regulators and the RACGP warned against it.
- Brisbane's Evercare charges A$45 per 30 days for fast access to a chosen GP on a capped list.
- Price a membership from panel capacity: the consults a GP can deliver divided by consults per member.
- The book's Babylon Health example shows the danger of underwriting costs you can't control.
In The Subscription Playbook I used a doctor to explain a problem.
A doctor who cures an ear infection doesn't have ongoing usage. They've solved the problem. The patient doesn't need them anymore, moves on with their life, and the doctor loses the patient's business.
That's great medicine. It's a terrible subscription.
So how does a medical practice build recurring revenue without encouraging people to come in when they don't need to?
The book's answer was Babylon Health. For £149 a year (about $200), its "GP at Hand" app gave patients access to a doctor 24/7. People paid for peace of mind. I called it a brilliant spin on the insurance model.
Then Babylon became the warning.
It went public through a SPAC deal at a $4.2 billion valuation in 2021, expanded into the US, and took on contracts to manage the care of health plan members, a far riskier business than selling access to a GP. In August 2023 its US entities filed for Chapter 7 liquidation. The UK business went into administration and its assets were sold for about £500,000. (The Babylon case study has the full story.)
The lesson for a clinic: sell access to things you control, like your time and your team. Don't underwrite costs you can't cap.
What does a medical membership look like in 2026?
In Australia, there are two very different versions. One is fine. One got practices into trouble.
The one that got practices into trouble. In April 2024, newsGP reported Cleanbill data showing 98 medical centers offering bulk billing to non-concession adults only if they'd paid a membership fee. The average was A$77.94 a year. The Department of Health confirmed that charging an annual administration or registration fee to guarantee bulk-billed services breaches the Health Insurance Act. The RACGP warned that if a practice were investigated, the government would seek to recoup Medicare rebates from the doctor who billed them, not the practice.
The department's guidance on bulk billing and additional charges is blunt: an annual administration or registration fee is not permitted to guarantee bulk-billed services, and it doesn't matter how the fee is described.
The access model. Brisbane's Evercare, as advertised in October 2026, works differently. Patients pay A$45 per 30 days (less for concession, kids and young adults; children under 16 can be added free to a paying parent's account). Doctors cap their patient numbers. Members get same-day or next-day appointments, in-app messaging with a care team that responds within two hours during set hours, and an annual health check. At each standard appointment the patient is charged the Medicare rate, which Medicare then refunds, so standard consults have no gap. Members can pause and reactivate.
I'm not offering a view on any particular clinic's compliance. The point is the shape: the fee buys access and a relationship, the doctor's panel is capped, and the billing is designed around Medicare from the start.
Which subscription models fit a medical practice?
| Model | Fit for medical | How it shows up |
|---|---|---|
| Member benefits | Strong | Capped patient list, faster appointments, care-team messaging, health reminders |
| Insurance model | Partial | Peace of mind from guaranteed access. Never underwrite third-party costs |
| Bundled services | Good | Annual health review, skin check and vaccinations for a set fee (where not Medicare-funded) |
| Minimum commitment | Good for B2B | Employer health programs on a 12-month agreement |
| SaaS | Add-on | Patient app features for chronic disease tracking |
A sample three-tier medical offer
Illustrative only, for a privately billing practice or services outside Medicare. Whether each inclusion is allowed alongside Medicare billing depends on how you bill, so check the design before you use anything like it.
| Individual | Family | Workplace | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fee (illustrative) | A$40 per 30 days | A$70 per 30 days | A$25 per employee a month (min. 10) |
| Access | Chosen GP on a capped list, same or next-day appointments | Same, for two adults and dependents | Priority appointments for staff |
| Care team | In-app messaging, business hours | In-app messaging, extended hours | Dedicated contact for HR |
| Prevention | Annual health review and planning | Annual review for each member | Annual on-site flu vaccination day, health checks |
| Commitment | Month to month, pause anytime | Month to month | 12-month agreement |
How do you know if a membership practice is profitable?
In a GP membership, the binding constraint is the doctor's time. So start with panel size.
Maximum panel size = Consults a GP can deliver a year ÷ Average consults per member a year
Worked example: one full-time GP
A GP does 30 hours of consults a week, at about four an hour, for 46 weeks. That's 5,520 consults a year.
If members average five consults a year, the panel cap is 5,520 ÷ 5 = about 1,100 members.
At A$40 per 30 days (about A$487 a year), 1,100 members bring in about A$535,000 a year in membership fees, before any Medicare revenue.
Now the risk. If members find the access so good they average seven consults a year, the cap falls to about 790. At 1,100 members you'd be overbooked by 40%, and same-day access, the thing members are paying for, disappears.
That's the gym problem in reverse. A clinic's membership only works if usage stays within capacity. Measure consults per member every month and adjust the cap or the price.
Your costs (clinician remuneration, the care team, rent, software) determine whether that revenue is profitable. Test them in the subscription price calculator.
Test a membership fee against your costs
Work out what a monthly membership needs to charge once you count clinician time, fees and overheads.
How to launch a medical membership
- Decide your billing model first. Bulk billing, mixed billing or private billing. Everything else depends on it.
- Get the compliance review before the design is final. AskMBS for Medicare questions, your medical indemnity provider, and a health lawyer.
- Define what the fee buys in services you control: access, time, a care team, reminders, planning.
- Set the panel cap using the formula above and a realistic consult rate.
- Write plain terms: fee, what's included, what's charged separately, how Medicare applies, how to pause and cancel.
- Check your advertising against AHPRA's rules before anything goes on your website.
- Offer it to existing patients first. Regular patients gain most, as Cleanbill's researchers noted.
- Measure every month: consults per member, wait times, churn and complaints.
Pitfalls to avoid
A fee to be bulk billed. The department and the RACGP have been clear. Don't do it, however it's described.
Unlimited access without a cap. If the panel is too big, the promise breaks and members leave.
Excluding new and one-off patients. Upfront fees can make a clinic inaccessible to people who need one visit. Keep a non-member pathway.
Encouraging unnecessary visits. Membership marketing that pushes regular appointments without clinical need can breach AHPRA's rules.
Underwriting costs you don't control. Specialist bills, hospital costs and pharmacy costs belong to someone else. Babylon's collapse shows what happens when you take on risk you can't price.
My take
Healthcare is where I'd be most careful with subscriptions. The model can genuinely improve care: continuity, faster access, a doctor who knows you. But the rules are tight for good reason. Design it with your lawyer and your accountant in the room, not after launch.
What Australian clinics need to know
General information as at October 2026, not legal advice.
Medicare. If you bulk bill a service, you accept the Medicare benefit as full payment and can't raise additional charges for that service. The department's guidance says an annual administration or registration fee can't be used to guarantee bulk billing. Read the guidance and ask AskMBS about your exact model.
AHPRA advertising. Section 133 of the National Law prohibits advertising that offers a gift, discount or inducement without stating its terms, or that encourages indiscriminate or unnecessary use of health services. AHPRA's guidelines also flag installment amounts shown without the total cost.
GST. Medical services are generally GST-free. A membership fee for access, app features or administrative services may be treated differently. Get advice on how your fee is characterized.
Subscription rules from 1 July 2027. Health services aren't on the list of exclusions (as at October 2026; regulations can add more) in the Unfair Trading Practices Act 2026. A rolling membership is likely to need prominent disclosure, prescribed notices and easy online cancellation. See subscription trap laws.
The accountant's angle
General practice is under real financial pressure. The RACGP's 2023 Health of the Nation report, cited by newsGP, found 81% of practice owners were concerned about their clinic's viability.
A well-designed membership can help:
- Predictable revenue that doesn't depend on how many patients walk in this week.
- Better cash flow, because fees arrive at the start of each cycle.
- A clearer valuation story: a capped, recurring patient base with known tenure is easier for a buyer or incoming partner to assess.
But medical centers also have structural tax issues, such as how payments to contracted doctors are treated for payroll tax in some states. Changing how revenue flows through the practice is worth an accountant's review before you launch. The subscriptions and cash flow guide covers the general principles, and the subscription profit calculator models the shift.
What to do next
Write down, in one sentence, what a member would pay for that a non-member can't get. If the answer is "bulk billing," stop there.
If the answer is access, continuity or a service you control, cost it against GP capacity. Dental and allied health practices face similar questions, covered in the dental and physio and allied health guides.
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Frequently asked questions
Can a GP clinic charge a membership fee in Australia?
It depends what the fee is for. The Department of Health says practices can't charge an annual administration or registration fee to guarantee bulk-billed services, however the fee is described. Privately billing practices, and services outside Medicare, have more room. Because the rules are technical, check your model with AskMBS and your medical indemnity provider before launch.
What is concierge medicine?
Concierge medicine, sometimes called direct primary care in the US, is a model where patients pay a recurring fee for a closer relationship with a doctor: a smaller patient list, longer appointments, faster access and direct messaging. In Australia it has to be designed around Medicare rules, which is why most local versions focus on access and care-team services.
How many patients should a membership GP have?
Work it out from capacity, not ambition. Multiply the consults a GP can deliver in a year by your target utilization, then divide by the average consults per member. A GP delivering about 5,500 consults a year, with members averaging five each, can carry roughly 1,100 members. Track actual usage monthly and adjust the cap.
Do patients actually value faster access enough to pay?
Some do, especially busy families, people managing chronic conditions and those who've struggled to get appointments. Others will see any fee as a barrier. Cleanbill's researchers noted that membership fees concentrate costs upfront, which suits regular patients but can deter new patients seeking a one-off visit. Know which group you're designing for.
Can I sell a health membership to employers instead?
Yes, and it's often simpler. Employers buy health checks, vaccination programs and priority appointments for staff, billed per employee per month. The business pays, so patient affordability is less of an issue. Medicare rules, AHPRA advertising rules and GST still need checking for each service you include.
General information only, current as at October 2026. It isn't legal, tax or financial advice and doesn't consider your circumstances. Speak to a qualified adviser before acting.
Talk it through with a BPAG adviser
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Robert Coorey, MBA
Robert is the author of The Subscription Playbook and Feed a Starving Crowd and a Director at BPAG Accountants in Sydney. More about Robert.
Sources
- Australian Government Department of Health, Bulk billing and additional charges (Oct 2025)
- newsGP (RACGP), 'I am concerned': Practices warned about patient memberships (8 Apr 2024)
- Evercare, Membership GP (accessed October 2026)
- Ahpra, Guidelines for advertising a regulated health service
- ATO, GST and medical services
- Healthcare Dive, Babylon Chapter 7 (Aug 2023)
- Competition and Consumer Amendment (Unfair Trading Practices) Act 2026, Federal Register of Legislation
Facts and prices checked 27 October 2026. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.