Questions about MBS Desk
Updated .
Plain answers about what MBS Desk is, where its answers come from, and what happens to your notes. For the MBS itself, see the common questions about MBS item numbers.
About MBS Desk
What is MBS Desk?
A tool that helps Australian GPs work out which Medicare item numbers to bill. You paste in your consult notes, and it shows the MBS items the consult fits, what you may have missed, what to check before you bill, and where in the MBS each answer comes from. More about MBS Desk.
Who is it for?
GPs, GP registrars, and nurse practitioners in Australia, and the practice staff who help them with billing.
What does it cover?
More than 800 MBS item numbers that GPs and nurse practitioners bill in their practices: consultations, care plans, mental health, health assessments, procedures, tests, and incentives. See them in the quick guide to MBS item numbers.
How does it work?
Paste or type what happened in the consult. MBS Desk reads the notes and, if it needs something they don’t say, like how long the consult took, it asks you. Then it shows the items, with their fees and the MBS source for each one.
Answers you can check
Where do the answers come from?
From the MBS itself: the item descriptions and explanatory notes on MBS Online, the Australian Government’s MBS website. Where the MBS doesn’t say, from Services Australia’s guidance. An AI model reads your notes, but it doesn’t decide what you can bill: that comes from rules written from the MBS’s own words, each linked to its passage.
Can MBS Desk get things wrong?
Yes. Every answer links to the part of the MBS it’s based on, so you can check it. If you’re not sure, check MBS Online. MBS Desk gives general information, not billing advice, and you’re responsible for the claim. See the Disclaimer.
How up to date is it?
Every morning, MBS Desk checks that it matches the MBS in force on MBS Online. Each item page shows the day it was last checked.
Does it give clinical advice?
No. MBS Desk is for billing only. It says whether an item fits a consult, not what care a patient needs, and it doesn’t answer clinical questions.
Privacy and your notes
What should I leave out of my notes?
Anything that could identify the patient: names, dates of birth, Medicare numbers, addresses, and phone numbers. Enter de-identified notes only. MBS Desk works without knowing who your patients are.
What happens to what I enter?
We log chats to improve MBS Desk. They’re stored in Sydney against a random id, not your name. To answer you, what you enter is processed by AI providers in the United States, and they don’t use it to train their models. We don’t sell personal information, show ads, or use tracking cookies. The Privacy Policy has the details.
Using MBS Desk
Does it work on a phone?
Yes. It works in your web browser on a computer, tablet, or phone.
Does it connect to my practice software?
Not directly. You copy your notes in, and MBS Desk works in your browser beside your practice software.
How do I get in touch?
Email admin@mbsdesk.com.au.
Try it on a consult
Paste your de-identified consult notes to see the items they fit, what you may have missed, and the MBS source for each.
Check a consult