Beginning a Life in Australia Welcome to Australia dss1690. 12. 15 Edition date
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- Introduction
- Medicare
- Health Care Card
- Private health insurance
- Incentives
9 Health and WellbeingIn this section
IntroductionIn Australia, a general practitioner (GP) is your first point of contact for any health care service, unless it is an emergency. A GP will assess your health care needs and will determine a treatment regime. This can include prescribing medication, referring to a pathology or diagnostic centre, or referral to a specialist such as a surgeon or a consultant physician. The specialist may in turn order additional pathology or other tests, and may decide you should be admitted to hospital. You can choose your own GP and you will be reimbursed for all or part of the GP’s fee by Medicare depending on the GP’s billing arrangements. MedicareThe Australian Government helps you to pay some medical and hospital expenses through a national health care scheme called Medicare. Under Medicare, treatment and accommodation is free if you are a public patient in a public hospital, treated by a doctor appointed by the hospital. Medicare helps with the costs of your visits to health professionals (such as doctors, specialists, optometrists and in some circumstances dentists and other allied health professionals). If you see a doctor often, or have tests regularly, your medical costs could be high. Visiting a doctor or having tests may cost you less once you reach a Medicare Safety Net threshold. Migrants, refugees and humanitarian entrants generally have immediate access to health care under Medicare, depending on their visa. Other temporary migrants may have to hold private health insurance. Some doctors and health professionals bulk bill. For bulk billed visits, the doctor will bill Medicare directly and you will have no out-of-pocket costs. Other doctors and health professionals may charge you for services. If so, talk to your health professional or, for more information about claiming a Medicare benefit, go to www.humanservices.gov.au/medicare You must bring your Medicare card (and Health Care Card if you have one) when you visit your health professional. The Australian Government helps with the cost of some medicines under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS). If you need a lot of medicine, the PBS Safety Net may help with the cost of prescription medicines. If you reach the PBS Safety Net amount and a pharmacist has given you a PBS Safety Net Card, your PBS medicines will be cheaper or free for the rest of that year. If you choose a more expensive brand of medicine, or your doctor prescribes one, you may still need to pay more. You can find more information about the PBS at www.pbs.gov.au/pbs/home Medicare does not pay for ambulance costs, most dental and allied health services, spectacles, or hospital accommodation for private patients. To find out if you are eligible to enrol with Medicare, go to a Medicare Service Centre with your passport or Immicard as well as an eligibility document, such as a visa grant letter from the Department of Immigration and Border Protection or evidence from Visa Entitlement Verification Online. If you are eligible, you will be given a Medicare number, which you can use to access health care services immediately. Your Medicare card, with your Medicare number, your name and the names of other family members if they are enrolled on the same card, will be posted to you. For more information on Medicare go to www.humanservices.gov.au/medicare or visit your local Department of Human Services service centre, which you can find at http://findus.humanservices.gov.au/ See also Chapter 1, What to do soon after arrival. Health Care CardIf you receive a Centrelink payment or you are on a low income, you may be eligible for a government Health Care Card (see www.humanservices.gov.au/concessioncards). The card will entitle you to concessions for health services, including the cost of medicines, doctors, dentists and ambulance. Even if you have a Health Care Card, you will still need to present your Medicare card with your Health Care Card for all basic hospital and medical treatment. See Chapter 10, Your Family for more information. Private health insuranceMany Australians choose to pay for private health insurance, which covers all or some of the costs of treatment for private patients in private or public hospitals. It may cover services that are not covered by Medicare, such as most dental care, most optical care, and ambulance services. The costs and types of cover vary, so if you decide to get private health insurance, it is important to compare different funds and check the details carefully before you buy the policy. IncentivesThe Australian Government offers financial incentives to encourage people to take out private health insurance. If you are considering taking out private health insurance you should be aware of:
If a person takes out hospital cover after their Lifetime Health Cover deadline they have to pay an extra 2% for each year they are aged over 30 when they first purchase hospital cover. For example, if someone buys private health insurance hospital cover for the first time at the age of 45, they will have to pay an extra 30% for their hospital cover. To avoid having to pay the Lifetime Health Cover loading, you must purchase hospital cover from an Australian registered health insurer before your Lifetime Health Cover deadline. For more information:
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