New accreditation scheme proposed for Australia's virtual healthcare providers
09 Nov 2026
The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care (ACSQHC) has published draft national standards for virtual healthcare providers and invited feedback from the healthcare sector.
The proposed standards aim to create a consistent approach to delivering virtual care across different healthcare settings. They also recognise the growing use of digital technology and changing ways Australians access healthcare.
The draft outlines three key areas: clinical governance, person-centred care and safe clinical systems. It also aims to provide a foundation for a possible future accreditation scheme.
Under the proposed standards, healthcare providers should have systems that help clinicians collect accurate patient histories and assessments before prescribing medication.
Providers would also need to use at least three approved patient identifiers during registration and at the beginning of each episode of care.
The standards further state that treatment decisions, including prescribing, should follow best practice and remain free from commercial influence.
The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra) has previously issued telehealth guidance for individual practitioners. However, there are currently no endorsed national standards specifically covering telehealth-only providers.
RACGP President Dr Michael Wright welcomed telehealth as an important addition to general practice but said virtual healthcare providers should meet the same safety standards as face-to-face services.
He said telehealth can offer greater flexibility, particularly when GPs already know a patient's medical history. However, he stressed the importance of collecting reliable information and maintaining continuity of care.
Telehealth use increased significantly after restrictions were eased during the COVID-19 pandemic. This growth also led to the establishment of more companies providing online-only healthcare services.
Previous efforts to introduce standards for these providers have not resulted in an approved national framework.
Earlier this year, the RACGP released a position statement warning that telehealth-only services should not replace comprehensive general practice care.
The college raised concerns about fragmented healthcare, particularly where companies provide individual services such as online weight management, medical certificates and medicinal cannabis.
It also called for stronger regulation to protect patients from unsafe prescribing, misleading marketing and commercial practices that could affect care quality.
While the draft standards encourage virtual care providers to adopt the recommendations, it is not yet clear how compliance will be monitored or enforced.
The ACSQHC said it would work with the Australian Government to consider different ways of assessing whether providers meet expected safety and quality standards. This could include introducing an accreditation scheme.
Dr Wright said clear accountability would be essential to making the standards effective, including establishing what happens when providers fail to meet the requirements.
Work on developing the standards began in June 2026. Feedback on the draft is open until 13 December 2026.
The RACGP is also preparing a submission in response to the consultation. The final virtual care standards are expected in late 2027.
New accreditation scheme proposed for Australia's virtual healthcare providers
Source: Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care (ACSQHC) / newsGP