All psychologists at Intrepidy are registered with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) and have Medicare provider numbers, enabling you to claim a Medicare rebate for your counselling and group sessions.
To claim these rebates, you must have a referral, in the form of a Mental Health Care Plan, from your GP, psychiatrist or paediatrician. Eligible people can receive:
10 individual counselling sessions in a calendar year. Your referring doctor will assess your progress after the first six sessions and/or
10 group therapy sessions in a calendar year
To get a Medicare referral you will need to make an appointment with your GP to complete a Mental Health Care Plan. It is important to tell the doctor's receptionist that you are requesting a referral to a psychologist as the GP needs approximately 30 minutes to discuss the plan with you and fill in the required paperwork.
You must obtain your GP referral prior to your first appointment in order to receive Medicare rebates.
If you have a Mental Health Treatment Plan, the out-of-pocket fee for a 50-minute consultation will be $86.15 for a registered psychologist during office hours or $75.75 for a mental health social worker. You will however be eligible for a significantly higher rebate, once you reach the Medicare Safety Net threshold.
If you have other significant medical expenses, you should be aware of the benefits of the Medicare Safety Net. Medicare will automatically provide the higher rebates to an individual as soon as the threshold is reached, but couples and families need to register with Medicare, even if you are all on the same Medicare card, to allow Medicare to keep track of the total of your medical expenses and apply the relevant rebate.
If Medicare has your bank account details, we can process the rebate claim online for you, and the rebate will be transferred to your nominated bank account.
Groups do not require an additional GP referral if you already have a current referral. If you do not have one, and you wish to claim a rebate, you will need to get a GP referral before attending the first session.
Note that you do not require a referral from a GP unless you intend to claim a Medicare rebate.