Average Out-of-Pocket Cost for Australian Dermatology Visits Rises to $230 for First Appointments, Per 2025 Report

An average first visit to a dermatologist costs an adult patient without concessions $230 out-of-pocket in Australia. Follow-up appointments cost almost $190 out-of-pocket. These figures come from a Cleanbill report published on Sunday, based on data from 322 clinics.

Cleanbill collected information on the pricing, services, and locations of Australia's dermatology clinics in 2024 and again in late 2025. The report shows the cost of a first dermatology appointment rose nationwide by an average of almost $18 in one year. Follow-up appointments rose by almost $20 in the same period.

Cost increases were steeper in Western Australia, South Australia, and Tasmania. Australia has just under 700 specialist dermatologists nationally and about 130 dermatology trainees. By comparison, psychiatry has 6,500 qualified psychiatrists and more than 2,500 trainees in Australia.

The number of dermatology training positions is constrained by funding and capacity within public hospitals and public outpatient clinics, according to the Australasian College of Dermatologists. Some repeat patients may have arrangements with their specialist that see them being charged lower fees, said James Gillespie of Cleanbill.

These lower fee arrangements are not usually available to first-time patients.

"Cleanbill is focused on providing insight into the general billing policies of clinics and practitioners so that patients can be aware of costs before booking in for an appointment for the first time," Gillespie said. The report reflects findings from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, he added.

Almost 810,000 Australians aged over 15 didn't see a specialist when they needed to because of cost, based on 2024-25 data from the bureau.

"Specialist care is becoming something you have to budget for, plan for, and in too many cases, go without. That is especially true for dermatology, where ongoing care is often not optional, it is medically necessary. The gap between what Medicare covers and what specialists charge has been widening for years.

People feel it every time they get a bill. No one should have to weigh up whether they can afford to follow up on a skin cancer check," said Dr. Elizabeth Deveny, CEO of the Consumers Health Forum. A spokesperson from the Australasian College of Dermatologists said dermatology care can often be time-intensive due to doctors managing chronic disease, cancer surveillance, and increasingly complex patient needs.

The college says rebates have not kept pace with practice costs such as staffing, rent, medical indemnity insurance, equipment, and compliance requirements. "Current funding settings are placing pressure on affordability and equity. Without reform to Medicare rebates and investment in public dermatology services, there's a risk that patients with fewer financial resources, or those living in regional and outer metropolitan areas, will experience longer wait times or limited local access to care.

Ensuring equitable access to dermatology care requires sustainable Medicare funding and adequate resourcing of public hospital dermatology clinics, rather than placing the burden on patients or individual specialists," the spokesperson said.