The number of private Territory medical clinics bulk billing patients is half the national average, but out-of-pocket costs for patients’ visits rank among the lowest in Australia, the most recent data released by health comparison site Cleanbill shows.

Cleanbill founder James Gillespie said the data showed that in the Territory, one in five, or 20.6 per cent of GP clinics bulk bill, while the national average was 42.7 per cent. The Territory was the third lowest jurisdiction, with Tasmania with 6.9 per cent, and the ACT with 5.1 per cent, lower.

His website lists seven private bulk billing clinics in the Northern Territory, all in Darwin, Palmerston and Coolalinga. But some others do offer bulk billing to those with concession cards. Territorians in many remote areas are served by government or Aboriginal-community run health clinics.

Out-of-pocket costs for Territorians at $36.87 however, is close to the national average for a standard 15-minute consultation. The national average out-of-pocket cost was $40.25, with a low of $34.81 in the greater Adelaide area, and a high of $49.01 in the ACT.

Cleanbill is an online health directory that compares the cost of going to the doctor across Australia and was founded in 2017.

“Over 50 per cent of general practices across the country are charging patients out-of-pocket fees, with Aussies paying a minimum of $40 per visit. Bulk billing is the cornerstone of Australia’s healthcare system. When we lose bulk-billing among the majority of GPs then we lose universal healthcare,” Mr Gillespie told Nine News.

“While the Blue Report’s aggregate national results showed a worrying lack of accessible bulk billing clinics, the postcode breakdown clearly indicates that bulk billing rates and out–of–pocket costs vary widely from area to area.

“These are, however, just local averages. In almost all cases it’s still possible for any patient to find a GP clinic that bulk bills or meets their affordability criteria,regardless of their postcode.

Based in Cleanbill data this is not possible for many people in Katherine, Tennant Creek, Nhulunbuy, and Alice Springs, among other places in the NT.

Royal Australian College of General Practitioners president Dr Nicole Higgins told the Herald Sun clinics that bulk billed clinics could really not afford to operate.

“The rates of bulk billing will continue to decrease and we’re now hitting a critical threshold where I expect that they will decrease exponentially,” she said.

“The federal government is to blame for directing funds to hospitals, which sequentially suffer the consequences of strained primary care.

“The federal government has been pouring more and more money into the state hospital systems, instead of investing at the grassroots in general practice.”

While Federal Health Minister Mark Butler blamed the previous coalition governments.

“Primary care is in its worst shape since Medicare began. Across the country we hear stories of Australians not being able to get in to see a bulk-billing doctor, or GPs changing from bulk billing to mixed billing,”