Trial sites for the federal government's new Healthier Medicare package of reforms are expected to be announced in the next few months and are set to be based around Primary Health Network (PHN) boundaries, with the PHNs themselves given access to pooled funding arrangements with state and community-based service providers.
The bundled payments structure recommended by the Primary Health Care Advisory Group (PHCAG) may also support more widespread telehealth provision as part of a new approach to flexible funding, with GPs paid on an upfront monthly or quarterly basis for co-ordinating care for chronically ill patients.
