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MBS Primary Care Items

MBS Follow-up Health Services provided by a Practice Nurse or registered Aboriginal health worker for an Indigenous Person who has received a health assessment (MBS Item 10987)

Fact Sheet

Follow-up Health Services provided by a Practice Nurse or registered Aboriginal health worker for an Indigenous Person who has received a health assessment (PDF 118 KB)

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MBS Item 10987 allows Indigenous people who have received any MBS health assessment item, or Indigenous children who have received a health assessment as part of the Northern Territory Emergency Response, to access Medicare rebates for follow up services provided by a practice nurse or registered Aboriginal health worker. A maximum of 10 services per patient is available in a calendar year.

Components of the follow-up item

The MBS follow-up service item may be used to provide:

• examinations/interventions as indicated by the health assessment;
• education regarding medication compliance and associated monitoring;
• checks on clinical progress and service access;
• education, monitoring and counselling activities and lifestyle advice;
• taking a medical history; and
• prevention advice for chronic conditions, and associated follow up.

Eligible practitioners

The MBS follow up item is provided by a practice nurse or registered Aboriginal health worker, on behalf of a GP. Where an exemption under subsection 19(2) of the Health Insurance Act 1973 has been granted to an Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation or a State/Territory Government Health Clinic, MBS item 10987 may be claimed for services provided by a practice nurse or registered Aboriginal health worker
on behalf of a GP.

Restrictions on providing the MBS follow-up item

The MBS follow-up item may only be provided if:

• the service is provided on behalf of and under the supervision of a GP;
• the person receiving the service is not an admitted patient of a hospital;
• the service is consistent with the needs identified through the health assessment;
• a claim has been made to Medicare Australia for a patient in respect of any MBS health assessment item in the last three years; and
• the GP under whose supervision the follow-up services to a health assessment are provided retains responsibility for the health, safety and clinical outcomes of the person.

Supervision of the practice nurse or registered Aboriginal health worker at a distance is recognised as an acceptable form of supervision.

MBS Item 10987 can be claimed in conjunction with:

• the MBS bulk billing incentive items 10990 and 10991, so long as the follow-up is provided to a Commonwealth concession card holder, or person under the age of 16, and the service is bulk billed;
• MBS allied health items for people receiving Indigenous health assessments (items 81300 to 81360);
• the MBS chronic condition disease management allied health services (items 10950 to 10970) for a person who has a chronic condition and has a GP Management Plan (item 721) and Team Care Arrangements (item 723);
• the MBS practice nurse and registered Aboriginal health worker chronic disease monitoring and support item (item 10997) for people with a chronic disease care plan; and
• the MBS practice nurse and registered Aboriginal health worker items for immunisation and wound management (items 10993 and 10996).

Guidelines and Resources

For more detailed information about MBS item descriptors and explanatory notes visit the Department of Health and Ageing website at MBS Online

Further information, including referral forms, is available on the Department of Health and Ageing website at the MBS Primary Care Items page.