Mental Health Treatment Plans

In Australia, a Mental Health Treatment Plan is available to eligible children and adults and helps you claim back part of the cost of up to 10 individual and 10 group sessions per calendar year. Services must be provided by an eligible health practitioner and you can click here to see if your mental health provider is eligible https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/allied-health-referrals-for-chronic-disease-health-care-plans?context=20#accordion1.

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Costs

Like other health services, if your mental health professional bulk bills there should be no out-of-pocket cost to you. However, if they do not bulk bill you will be responsible for paying the difference. To find out exactly what Medicare rebate you can expect to receive, ask your mental health service provider what item number/code will apply to your service and then search the code here: https://www9.health.gov.au/mbs/search.cfm.
 

When performing this search, you may see a 'recommended fee' alongside the 'benefit amount'. However, practitioners are permitted to charge fees outside the recommended schedule, so it is important to ask about these fees and determine your out-of-pocket costs in advance. 

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Accessing your Mental Health Treatment Plan

Make an appointment with your GP to discuss your mental health concerns. Your GP may conduct a broader health assessment and may recommend seeking further opinions or participating in adjunct forms of treatment if needed. Once you have obtained your Mental Health Treatment Plan you can contact a registered mental health professional (recommended by your GP or chosen by yourself) and book your initial session. You will need to provide your referral and Medicare number to receive your rebate. To start off with, you will be referred for six sessions. Upon completing your sixth session, your mental health service provider is required to update your GP on your progress. If more sessions are needed, you or your mental health professional can request a referral for additional sessions up to the remainder of the 10 sessions permitted within that calendar year. 

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Although you can book directly with a mental health service provider and pay the total cost per session out-of-pocket, it is important to note that you will not receive a Medicare rebate if you book directly with a mental health professional and do not have a referral from a GP, psychiatrist or paediatrician.

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More information on these Medicare incentives can be found at https://www.health.gov.au/our-work/better-access-initiative or by contacting Medicare on 132 011.

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Depending on your level of cover, some private health insurance policies may rebates some of the costs of psychological and counselling services. Like other health services, your health fund will usually pay a percentage of the cost and you will be required to pay the balance. Your mental health service provider may need to be registered with your health fund for you to receive the rebate, so you should check this with your provider or your health fund before booking an appointment. Additionally, the waiting periods, rebate amounts, and annual limits will vary from fund to fund, so this is also something you should check with your health fund before scheduling in several sessions. Further information can be found at www.privatehealth.gov.au and by contacting your health fund directly.​​

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