If you are a Medicare card holder and wish to claim the Medicare rebate, you will require a referral from either a GP or specialist to entitle you to claim your Medicare rebate. GP referrals are valid for 12 months from the date of your first consultation, and specialist referrals are valid for three months from the date of your first consultation. Your referral needs to have:
- relevant clinical information about the condition for investigation, opinion, treatment and management
- the date of the referral
- the signature of the referring practitioner
The referral must be presented prior to attending your appointment to be eligible for Medicare rebates. It does not need to be addressed either to Alana Healthcare or the doctor you will be seeing. Patients can present a referral to any doctor of their choosing, as long as it is within the same specialty.
Medicare ineligible patients or patients who do not wish to claim the Medicare rebate do not require a referral to attend our service.
If you are attending an appointment with our specialist physiotherapist you may be eligible to claim a Medicare rebate if you are referred from a GP under a GP chronic condition management plan (GPCCMP). Not everyone is eligible and you will need to speak to your GP to find out. You can find more information about eligibility criteria on the Services Australia website. If you are not eligible to claim your physiotherapy visit through Medicare, you may be able to claim through your private health insurance, subject to your level of cover.