2 April 2026
Australia's approach to electronic health records is shifting — and a major deadline is looming. From 1 July 2026, pathology and diagnostic imaging providers will be legally required to upload reports to My Health Record by default. For GP clinics and allied health practices, the change isn’t just about compliance for labs. It’s about a fundamental shift in how patients access and engage with their own health data — and your practice needs to be ready.
The Modernising My Health Record (Sharing by Default) Act 2025 legislates a progressive roll-out of expanded patient access to their clinical information.
Here’s the timeline:
The legislation does include some exceptions. Reports don’t need to be uploaded if a patient opts out, if the provider has genuine safety concerns about sharing the information, or if there are technical system issues outside the provider’s control. But the default position is now firmly: share unless there’s a specific reason not to.
If you’re a GP, allied health provider, specialist, or dental practice, you are not in scope for the July 2026 mandate — yet. The initial requirement targets pathology and diagnostic imaging services. However, the government has flagged that expansion to other types of clinical information (including GP notes and specialist letters) is under active consideration.
That said, the downstream effects on your practice are already very real.
When a patient can see their blood results in My Health Record the same day the lab uploads them — sometimes before you’ve reviewed them — expect an uptick in calls and messages. “I can see my results but I don’t understand them.” “The app says my liver enzymes are elevated — is that bad?” These are conversations your reception team will increasingly field, and they require a clinical response.
Your practice workflows around result management need to account for this new patient behaviour. That means ensuring patients are pre-briefed about how to interpret results (or who to call), and that your team has a clear triage protocol for queries that come in ahead of a GP follow-up appointment.
Under the new model, patients can still opt out of sharing specific documents or their entire record. Healthcare providers must respect these preferences. The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) oversees compliance under the My Health Records Act 2012, which remains in force.
If your practice uses My Health Record as part of standard care, now is a good time to review patient consent documentation and make sure your front desk staff know how to answer basic questions about the record system. A brief team education session before July is well worth the time investment.
The My Health Record changes are part of a broader push under the National Digital Health Strategy 2023–2028. The government’s stated goal is a truly connected health system — one where clinical information follows the patient rather than staying siloed in individual practice records.
For practices, this means electronic health records are becoming less “optional” infrastructure and more a core part of how healthcare is delivered and tracked in Australia. Practices that invest now in understanding their PMS integration with My Health Record, and in upskilling staff on digital health workflows, will be better positioned as the requirements expand.
The Australian Digital Health Agency offers free training resources for practices and clinical staff — worth bookmarking if your team hasn’t engaged with them recently.
With patient expectations around digital access rising, practices that build a more connected, responsive care environment will have a real advantage. When routine administrative load — like appointment calls and after-hours queries — is handled smoothly, your team has more bandwidth to focus on exactly this kind of meaningful change management. Tools like Liza help practices stay on top of patient communication without adding pressure to your front desk.
The digital health landscape in Australia is evolving fast. Staying ahead of it is good medicine — and good business.