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The Australian government announced that from 1 July 2025, women suffering from persistent pelvic pain and endometriosis will have access to longer consultations of forty-five minutes or more, covered under Medicare.

As the leading standards body for women’s health, The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (mini��ý���, The College) has been working collaboratively with the Department of Health and Aged Care under the leadership of The Hon Mark Butler MP, Minister for Health and Aged Care, and  The Hon Ged Kearney MP, Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care, to guide the development of crucial additions to the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS).  

Persistent pelvic pain has a debilitating impact on daily life and affects many Australian women[1].The current MBS items don’t allow for sufficient appointment time for practitioners to appropriately consult with patients presenting with persistent pelvic pain. The new numbers will allow more time to better deal with the complex nature of these presentations.

mini��ý��� met with the Department of Health and Aged Care in March 2024 to discuss the general insufficiency of the current MBS item number structure to provide adequate appointment time for practitioners to address persistent pelvic pain and endometriosis. The College was subsequently asked to assist the Department in briefing the Minister on the issues and potential solutions via a formal submission.

As a result, two new items will be added to the MBS to help patients access improved care for complex gynaecological conditions, requiring an investment of $49.1 million. The two new MBS items will provide a higher fee for longer initial gynaecologist consultation ($168.60 for a minimum of 45 minutes, compared to the standard rate of $95.60), and a higher fee for longer subsequent consultations ($84.35 for a minimum of 45 minutes, compared to the standard rate of $48.05).

A new extended 60-minute MBS item is also being introduced for GPs which will ensure they are fairly compensated for the comprehensive care they provide in this area. This longer consult provides clinicians with additional time to examine patient’s histories and symptoms.  

“The MBS additions are good step in the right direction. Complex problems require complex solutions. If we have more time to listen to patients, we can address their needs better. There are a number of different areas where we can continue this work, with funding for Pain Management and endometriosis education for healthcare providers being a priority. We look forward to reading the details in the MBS description and hope it includes referrals to a multidisciplinary team, a biopsychosocial approach to pain, and objective measurements of conditions.” Said Dr Marilla Druitt, Obstetrician & Gynaecologist, and mini��ý��� Councillor.

mini��ý��� commends the Minister and Assistant Minister for their leadership in making this essential change to the MBS.  The new items will improve health outcomes for women. This is a great example of what can be achieved through collaboration and is a first step towards tackling the highly complex issue of persistent pelvic pain. Looking ahead, significant investment in education and training for health care providers working in clinical centres for pain management will be required to support effective assessment of care solutions. The College would also welcome the addition of Ryeqo – a drug recently approved in Australia for use in treating endometriosis – to the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) to improve equity of access to treatment options.  

mini��ý��� continues to work diligently in this space by providing clinicians with evidence-based recommendations which support them in delivering appropriate, high-quality care to patients with endometriosis. The College has released its first clinical guideline, ‘Australian clinical practice guideline for the diagnosis and management of endometriosis’ and an update is currently in progress.

[1] The Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health (ALSWH) found that around 1 in 7 (14%) women born in 1973–1978 were estimated to have been diagnosed with endometriosis by age 44–49 and women born in 1989–95, 8.8% were estimated to have been diagnosed with endometriosis by age 26–31. 

For media enquiries
Bec McPhee
Manager, Executive Office & Advocacy
0413 258 166
bmcphee@ranzcog.edu.au