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Bulk Bill Consent / Medicare AoB - Troubleshooting

This article covers the most common issues practices encounter with Bulk Bill Consent / Medicare AoB consent requests, and how to resolve them.

Why hasn't the consent request been sent to the patient?

The request is only triggered once the appointment has been completed and invoiced to Medicare. Check the steps for your PMS:

Best Practice

Steps to trigger the consent request
  1. Ensure the relevant PMS appointment types are enabled for Bulk Bill Consent in Practice Admin.
  2. Mark the patient as arrived.
  3. Start the appointment visit.
  4. Complete the appointment visit.
    Invoice the appointment to Medicare and select Generate & store (choose "Do not generate assignment of benefit: Managed externally" where Healthengine is managing consent collection).

Pracsoft / Medical Director

Steps to trigger the consent request
  1. Relevant PMS appointment types enabled in Practice Admin.
  2. Appointment located in the Pracsoft appointment book.
  3. Recorded as a same-day visit.
  4. Invoice created — MBS items added, Invoice to = Bulk Bill, "Remove from Waiting Room" ticked, Voucher selected.
  5. Appointment visit completed.

Tip: If there are multiple visits in a day, ensure the consult time is close to the appointment time so the correct encounter is matched.

Why does the status say "Send" with "no previous send"?

This means there is no mobile number or email address on the patient record in the PMS. Add the patient's mobile number and/or email to their record, then select Send in Practice Admin to issue the request.

The patient didn't receive the SMS or email

  • Confirm a valid mobile number and email address are on the patient record — the request is sent by SMS and email at the same time.
  • Re-send the request from Practice Admin (Bulk Billing Consent). You can re-send at any time, and an automated reminder is sent 24 hours later if the patient hasn't responded.
  • The link remains valid for 30 days.

A patient can't verify their identity

Verification uses the patient's first name, last name, date of birth and gender. Ensure these match the patient's Medicare details in the PMS, correct any mismatches, then re-send the request.

The status shows "Expired"

The consent link is valid for 30 days. If it has expired, re-send the request from Practice Admin to generate a new link.

If I change a patient's appointment type before their appointment, will the request still send?

Yes. If the appointment type is changed before the patient is marked as arrived and the visit is started, the request is sent once the appointment is completed and invoiced to Medicare.

Where is the patient's consent stored in the PMS?

  • Best Practice: under the Correspondence In section of the patient record.
  • Pracsoft: under the Correspondence tab of the patient file in MedicalDirector Clinical (the same place submitted New Patient Forms are stored).

How do I find when the request was last sent?

In Practice Admin (Bulk Billing Consent), the dashboard shows the last sent date/time and contact attempts for each request.

Will a request still send if the patient is on the Blocked Communications list?

Yes. This is a transactional message tied to the patient's appointment (not a marketing message), so it isn't affected by the Blocked Communications list. We recommend telling patients at the time of their appointment that they'll receive an SMS and email to verify their identity and provide consent.