According to the Social Services Department, almost a million Australians are not aware of their share of a $241 million debt.
The money was withheld from the Medicare recipients who have failed to update their bank details. On the other hand, 200 individuals are owed more than $10,000.
According to Bill Shorten, the minister for government services, over 224,000 Australians aged 18 to 24 are owed over $52 million in unrecovered benefits.
Those who have updated their details with the help of the myGov app will receive their entitlements within three business days.
To notify the individuals who are owed money, Services Australia will send them notifications through their myGov inbox.
According to Shorten, the amount of money owed to the people is a small portion of the total Medicare benefits that Australians receive.
According to Shorten, the government agency responsible for administering Medicare benefits paid almost $30 billion to Australians in the financial year ended June 30, 2018.
Over half a million people have been reunited with their unrecovered benefits since December of that year. The rising cost of medical services has prompted the government to increase the rebates that Medicare provides.
Nicole Higgins, the president of the RACGP, noted that the government’s failure to deliver on its promise to provide affordable healthcare has led to the rising out-of pocket costs for many Australians.
An annual survey conducted by the organization revealed that the average fee for an initial consultation has increased significantly over the years.
A report released earlier this month revealed that the number of general practitioners who charge more than $85 for consultations has increased.
The percentage of them who do so has also gone up from 41 percent to 43 percent.
The average amount that patients spend on out-of-pocket medical costs after seeing a GP is $45.
The low proportion of GPs who fully bulk bill their patients is attributed to the increasing financial viability concerns of the profession.