detritus

Hi,
I received my 175 Skilled Independent visa in August and plan to migrate to Australia in June 2010. My wife and myself plan to travel around for the first three months (without having any income).
As fas as I know I should be eligible for Medicare in that time.
Is that correct?
As Medicare is mainly funded by 1.5% of my taxable income
and I do not have any taxable income in that time how would I pay for Medicare (I have problems to believe that I get it for free ) ?

Thanks for your help,
regards,
Jan

moneypenny20

Medicare is basically free (you pay through your taxes once you are working) but in the meantime you are entitled to and have access to Medicare so don't worry about it.

Ozwanderer

It's not totally free.
. You do get free basic hospital care but for seeing GPs/specialists the former will only be free if you find a Bulk Billing Practice and not too many around.
. Most GPs work on a scheduled fee and then you can get about 60 -70% back from Medicare and Specialists will likely cost you a bit more.
. There's a Prescribed Medicines Scheme so you do not pay the total charge for medicines but you'll still pay about $15 - 20 for most general stuff.

If you're going to travel for a few months, you might want to see about whether you can get some travellers insurance or private cover, www.nib.com.au having a restricted private cover for about $30/m/p and at least then with something like that you have the option of getting into a private hospital for quicker attention if you have to.

The otherthing you ought to sign up for is Ambulance Cover as that is fairly cheap but it's real expensive if you end up in one, maybe a travellers insurance initially would cover that.

ozhappy981

1. Yes. When you come on a 175 visa, you are eligible for Medicare from the day you arrive.

2. Those who don't earn any income, or who earn very little do not have to pay to use Medicare. It's free .

If you *really* can't find a bulk-billing doctor, then expect to pay about $30 per visit (after Medicare rebate).

The cost of prescriptions varies depending on the type of medication you need.

There is no need for medical travel insurance when you are travelling within Oz: All urgent and/or emergency hospital treatment is free.

[In any case: private health insurance does not pay for doctor's visits or prescriptions.]

Kooky.

Mine does, and I'd imagine a lot of policies do if you pay enough. I don't get the full amount back but then I go to specialised doctors (so pay about $150 a time, before rebate) and get compounded meds.