Can nutritionists order blood tests in Australia?

Why Medicare pathology needs a doctor

Medicare pays benefits for pathology only when an eligible practitioner requests the test. Nutritionists aren’t eligible requesters, so a request from you can’t be bulk billed or attract a Medicare rebate. The same applies to naturopaths and most allied health professions.

Private pathology is different. Some laboratories accept requests from nutritionists, and your client pays the laboratory’s private fee for each test.

Why your client’s GP may say no

The RACGP advises GPs to request tests only when they’re clinically indicated, and to use their own judgement when a patient brings a list from another practitioner. Many GPs decline broad panels for that reason. It isn’t personal, but it leaves your client in the middle.

What is the Baseline Health Check?

The Baseline Health Check is a 70+ marker blood test that gives you a full starting picture: blood count, kidneys, liver, lipids, glucose and insulin, iron, thyroid, inflammation and vitamin D. 40 markers show an evidence-backed Vively optimal range beside the lab’s range.

• $99 with a Medicare card. Medicare funds the pathology and a 5–10 minute telehealth GP consult, where the GP reviews the request and confirms the final tests, as with any Medicare referral. Your client pays a $99 Vively fee, once every 3 months.
• $299 without Medicare. The same Baseline, paid privately.
• One blood draw. At one of about 3,700 Vively partner collection centres (Healius brands, Australian Clinical Labs and 4Cyte), with any private tests collected at the same time.

Read the Baseline guide

What else you can refer

Beyond the Baseline, your account has 300+ private tests, priced per test, from pathology partners including Nutripath, Microba and Fatty Acid Labs. Blood tests are collected at a collection centre, and at-home kits are posted to your client.

• Hormones. DUTCH dried urine, saliva hormone profiles, and the Perimenopause and Female Hormone Health blood tests. See tests
• Fertility. AMH, semen analysis and DNA Fertility. See tests
• Genetics. The myDNA Comprehensive Health Report, MTHFR and DNA methylation. See tests
• Gut health. Comprehensive stool analysis (CDSA), microbiome mapping and SIBO breath tests. See tests
• Food sensitivities. IgG and IgA food panels, from 96 to 240 foods. See tests
• Stress & sleep. Cortisol and DHEA saliva profiles, sleep profiles and neurotransmitters. See tests
• Heart & metabolic. HbA1c, fasting insulin, homocysteine and continuous glucose monitoring. See tests
• Nutrients. Iron studies, vitamin D, B12, red cell minerals and the omega-3 index. See tests
• Toxins & metabolism. Heavy metals, mycotoxins, organic acids and hair mineral analysis. See tests

Browse tests by area

Your three options

How testing works through Vively

1. You send one referralChoose the Baseline, private tests, at-home kits or CGM, who pays and how results are shared. It takes about two minutes.
2. Your client paysBy card from a secure link, or your practice pays when you send.
3. Your client does the testBlood tests at a Vively partner collection centre: 4,000+ for private tests, about 3,700 for the Medicare Baseline. The referral tells your client where they can go. For the Baseline, a 5–10 minute telehealth GP call comes first, where the GP confirms the final tests. At-home kits and CGM sensors are posted.
4. Results come back to youIn your client’s record, with lab and optimal ranges side by side and the lab’s PDF. You’re notified, and you choose when your client sees them.

What it saves you and your client

• Your time. No GP letters, no lab accounts and no chasing PDFs. One referral covers blood tests, at-home kits and CGM, and every result lands in one record with each marker’s last four results.
• Your client’s money. With a Medicare card, the Baseline is a $99 Vively fee instead of $299 private, and private tests go in the same blood draw.
• Your client’s time. A short telehealth call instead of a GP appointment, then one of about 3,700 collection centres.
• Your client relationship. Results come to you, and the care plan stays with you.

What to tell your client

“I’d like us to do a full set of bloods through Vively. You’ll get an email with a secure link to pay. With your Medicare card it’s a $99 Vively fee, and Medicare covers the rest. You’ll have a quick telehealth call with a GP, then a blood test at a collection centre near you, and the results come straight to me.”

Common questions

Can nutritionists refer for Medicare-funded blood tests?

Not directly. Medicare only funds pathology requested by eligible practitioners such as GPs. Through Vively, a GP issues the Medicare referral for the Baseline Health Check after a short telehealth consult, confirming the final tests subject to their clinical review. A client with a Medicare card pays a $99 Vively fee.

How much does a blood test cost through a nutritionist?

Through Vively, the Baseline Health Check is a $99 Vively fee with a Medicare card, or $299 without. Private tests are priced per test, and your client sees the price before paying.

Which tests can nutritionists order?

Through Vively: the Baseline Health Check, plus 300+ private tests across hormones, fertility, genetics, gut health, food sensitivities, stress and sleep, nutrients and environmental toxins, and continuous glucose monitoring.

Does my client need to see their own GP?

No. For the Medicare Baseline, your client has a 5–10 minute telehealth call with a GP through Vively. Private tests need no GP call.

How do the results come back?

Into your client’s record in Vively, with lab and optimal ranges side by side and the lab’s PDF. You’re notified, and you choose when your client sees them.

Sources

1. RACGP: Responding to patient requests for tests
2. MBS pathology notes (PN.5.1)
3. Department of Health: Pathology compliance