THE Labor candidate for Dawson, in the wake of last week's announcement that 121 Medical Centre will now only offer a private billing structure, has blamed the LNP's Medicare rebate freeze for the billing change.

Belinda Hassan said the freezing of the Medicare rebate had added around $55 to the average GP visit where there was a time that the gap was as little as $5.

"Over time that rebate has not increased with the CPI or moved with the times, so now the rebate is $37.05 and a doctor's visit is $85 and people are out of pocket a significant amount,” she said. "If that rebate had been increased year-on-year then more doctors would have been able to bulk bill because they would have been able to cover their costs.”

The condemnation of the policy comes after statistics released this week state that of the 29,293 visits to the Mackay Hospital in the last eight months, 31 per cent were classed as low range Category 4 and 5 patients.

Technology Sydney Professor Margaret Fry said there were a variety of reasons people visited the ED with less urgent conditions.

Professor Fry said people might not attend their GP because it was closed, they couldn't get a booking or because they didn't bulk bill.

"Especially in rural areas it can take two weeks to book into the GP so the ED will act as a safety net that is available 24/7,” she said.

"People might sit patiently and wait for a GP appointment only for the GP to call the ambulance and send them to the ED straight away. It is a lot more common than people realise.”

LNP member for Dawson George Christensen agreed last week local GPs making the decision not to bulk bill was a problem in the Whitsundays.

"The government can't force doctors to bulk bill,” he said. "There has been an issue about the freezing of the Medicare rebate, that freeze actually lifts on July 1.”

Calls last month from the maverick MP suggesting patients experiencing lengthy waits could present to the local ER rooms in Mackay or Proserpine were rejected by Ms Hassan.

"Non-vital injuries are filling emergency departments,” Ms Hassan said.

"He is out there saying go to the emergency department and they are saying 'please don't come here go to your GP we cant handle the workload'.

Mr Christensen said he would lobby the Federal Minister for Health, Greg Hunt, and demand the government change its policy.

But Queensland Health Minister Steven Miles said this had not happened.

Data released through a Senate Estimates hearing found people in Mr Christensen's electorate of Dawson were paying out-of-pocket costs of $39.40 to see a GP and $77.29 for a specialist, making it the second most expensive area in Queensland behind Brisbane.