This week we welcomed the government’s decision to make psychiatry inpatient telehealth items 92478-92483 permanent on the Medical Benefits Schedule (MBS) from 1 November 2026.
The announcement comes after the conclusion of the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing’s post-implementation review of temporary MBS psychiatry inpatient telehealth items. The federal AMA made a formal submission to that review, in September 2025, strongly advising the six items be made permanent and the restriction on the number of consultations be eased.
The news is a win for access to and continuity of care for patients.
By making these items permanent on the MBS, the government has provided certainty and continuity of care for patients in private hospitals. These inpatient telehealth items were originally introduced during the Covid-19 pandemic but have more than proven their worth in delivering greater flexibility, improved access, and more timely care.
We are also pleased by the decision to ease the restriction which previously limited telehealth consultations to one per week.
From 1 November 2026, the number of allowable video consultations will increase to two per seven-day period.
While we welcome these decisions, we acknowledge the improvements stop short of including our calls for a telephone fallback option when video is not possible, and do not remove the requirement for an in-person consultation within 48 hours of admission.
