BeachBassist

Thanks guys you have been very helpful. this is a great forum.

just wondering do you have to be employed first to get medicare or can you sign up right away on arrival?

Thanks

fish.01

Just sign up and they will give you your number straight away and post out the card. Not tied to employment at all.

BeachBassist

cool thanks. that's a relief.

kips

I work for Medicare. Just take your passport/s to your nearest Medicare office with proof of residency and you will be asked to fill out an application form. You will be issued with a temporary a Medicare card straightaway as it takes about three weeks for the plastic card to be sent out to you. Look at the website medicareaustralia.gov.au for more details.

punoo

What happens when u reach Australia and expecting a baby in 1 month.Do u still get medicare without a job?
We will hve PR and would like to go n have our baby in Australia...is it possible? Will we have to pay costs of birth(cesarian)?

kips

Your are still entitled to use Medicare as have PR. It's not job-related or means-tested like Family Tax and Child Care benefits. If you use a public hospital then all your accommodation and theatre costs are covered. However, the doctors can charge what they like and you may have considerable out of pocket expenses, even after the Medicare rebate for a doctor's bill ie the gap between what a doctor charges and the Medicare benefit. And specialists in particular charge a fortune and the Medicare refund isn't much. However, there is the Medicare Safety Net to help patients with high out-of-pocket expenses in a year for visits to the GP, specialists, X-rays, some scans and blood tests done as outpatient services. When these expenses reach a certain level you receive the Medicare rebate plus 80% of your out-of-pocket expenses so it makes a big difference. If you are entitled to Family Tax Benefit Part A (you may well be so check with Centrelink first) then the safety net threshold you need to reach before the higher rebate kicks in is at present is $555.70 and if not then $1,111. The threshold is per family not per individual. The safety net threshold changes each year. Hope this helps.

NickyC

I think you might have a tough job getting an airline to fly you anywhere if you're over 36 weeks pregnant. At that late stage you'll probably be up for doctors letters and certificates etc.

Don't leave it too late to arrive..

fish.01

Are you talking about a doctor charging a gap in a public hospital for a baby delivered in a public hospital?

BeachBassist

Thanks. sounds simple. good to know. will need permanent address first though. staying first 2 weeks in a hostel until I find an apartment.

mika24me

I am sorry but this is wrong

All costs associated with having a baby in a public hospital in Australia will be covered.

However if the reasons for the cesarean are personal choice and not medical need then you may have trouble convincing your doctor in the public system. In this case you may need to consider vaginal birth or a private doctor. If you chose to have a private doctor then you have the choice to do so in a public hospital, thus minimising your costs.

kips

Sorry I should have made it clear that the doctors' costs when ADMITTED in a public hospital are covered fully but when you see your GP or specialist in their own surgery as an outpatient then they set their own fees. And if you are pregnant then that is more likely to include several visits to a doctor up until the birth so the costs add up.

For example, for a standard consultation with a GP (item 23) doctors charge anything between $50 and $85 and the rebate from Medicare is $33.55.

For a specialist consultation (item 104) the refund is $67.20 but I've processed claims where the charge can vary from $100 to $350 for one visit and quite often the patients need to go back to the specialist a few more times and they don't get a discount for follow-up visits. I've lost count of the number of times patients express outrage at being charged so much for a consultation lasting less than five minutes.

plantpot

You can get all pre baby gp checks IN the hospital for free if you see a nmidwife, just go to your local maternity hospital with your medicare card. then you pay nothing at all. If you choose to go outpatient to a GP in a health centre you will have to pay BUT you can always choose bulk billing, that's what people generally do here in Chatswood ...

kips

So what if you have complications in your pregnancy and need to see a GP ? A midwife cannot replace a GP and from what I've seen working at a Medicare office an awful lot of pregnant women here see their GPs, obstetricians and gynaecologists in their surgeries throughout their pregnancy more than in the UK. As for bulk billing an increasing number of doctors and particularly specialists - especially the really good ones - don't bulk bill so finding a doctor who does is not as easy as it sounds. The above information is based on feedback I have had from hundreds of patients - not my opinions. Why do you think so many Medicare offices have long queues ? Ninety per cent are patients claiming their Medicare refund in cash because so many doctors don't bulk bill. You can only choose bulk billing if you can find a doctor who chooses to do this. I've yet to come across a specialist,especially a cardiologist, who bulk bills. I wouldn't have a job at Medicare if the majority of doctors bulk billed.

ozhappy981

Punoo is having a baby ... She is unlikely to need a cardiologist.

As "plantpot" said: if Punoo can go to her local maternity hospital, she can get all pre baby gp checks IN the hospital for free if she sees a nmidwife, just go to your local maternity hospital with your medicare card. then you pay nothing at all.

If she goes to a bulk-billing GP, it's also free.

Most pregnancies do not require a specialist doctor.

And when she goes into hospital to have the baby that's free as well. If there are any complications with mother and/or baby while they are in the hospital - that treatment will be free as well. (But hopefully all will be well.)

plantpot

There are specialists in the hospital who are for free as well...the paeds the Gynaes etc....

Whereabouts will the OP be, if it's in Sydney there will be no probs with bulk billings docs there are LOADS...