Can I get a Medicare rebate for my podiatry appointment?
In short, YES
Although podiatry is not an allied health service that is automatically rebatable, you may be eligible for a Medicare rebate for podiatry. A few steps are required for this to be achieved. We will explain the Medicare process and try to keep things as simple as possible.
How do I get a Medicare referral?
In short, through your general practitioner (GP)
If you have a chronic or terminal illness that may benefit from podiatric care you will be assessed by your GP to determine your eligibility. If eligible, your GP will complete paperwork called a Team Care Arrangement plan which is sent to the podiatry clinic to be accepted by the treating podiatrist . On acceptance by the podiatrist the GP issues an Enhanced Primary Care plan or EPC. This paperwork must be presented to the podiatry clinic to enable the processing of the Medicare rebate.
A chronic medical condition is one that has been (or is likely to be) present for six months or longer, for example, asthma, cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, musculoskeletal conditions and stroke.
There is no list of eligible conditions.
How much will I have to pay?
At present (08/18), the current medicare rebate is $52.95 per podiatry consultation regardless of the fee charged.
Our services and visits are not bulk billed which means you are required to pay the full amount of the consultation up front.
Your Medicare rebate will be processed at time of consultation and you will be reimbursed $52.95 which will be paid into your nominated bank account.within 24 hours.
This means for an initial podiatry consultation of $90 you will be out of pocket $37.05 and for an ongoing consultation of $75 you will be out of pocket $22.05.
The maximum number of allied health consultations that can be claimed through Medicare in a calendar is five.
There are no circumstances where more than 5 visits are allocated within the calendar year.
CHECKLIST
➤ Speak to your GP about your eligibility for a Medicare funded podiatry appointment
➤ Bring in your GP referral (EPC) into our clinic.
➤ Pay in full for the appointment using EFT/Cash/Cheque
➤ Our clinic processes an on the spot claim to Medicare
➤ You will receive $52.95 rebate within you bank account within 24hrs.
Still have questions? Check out our FAQ’s page HERE or contact the clinic today.
