Is it expensive to see a doctor in Australia?

Australia has established a health care system covering all residents and achieved universal medical security. So, do Australian immigrants enjoy Medicare medical insurance? What is the correct procedure for seeing a doctor? How much is the personal part to bear?

What is medical insurance?

Public medical insurance is what we call medical insurance, which is what we call free medical insurance. As long as you get permanent residency in Australia or become an Australian citizen, you will get this insurance card. In most cases, medical care is free, including family doctors (GP), public hospitals and some specialized clinics that support bulk billing.

However, the teacher of Guangdong CTS Study Abroad Center reminded that international students are not allowed to participate in Australia's national medical insurance Medicare. All international students must purchase Australian Overseas Student Medical Insurance (OSHC) within the validity period of the student visa. Within the scope of insurance policy, you can enjoy basically the same medical benefits as Australian residents.

Medical Guide for Australian Immigrants

Generally speaking, the process of seeing a doctor in Australia is similar to that in China. Minor illnesses can be checked at the community clinic first. If the community clinic suggests going to a big hospital for examination, we will generally register for examination. Australia just has one more choice than China, that is, General Practitioner (GP), that is, general family doctor. The cost of family doctor GP is about 37 Australian dollars.

So what's the name of the clinic in Australia? Australian clinics are called Australian medical centers, and most of them are specialists such as ophthalmologists and obstetricians. If you have a medical insurance card, you can go to a public hospital through the recommendation of a general family doctor (GP) and see a specialist for free. Experts can usually decide their own fees. According to different specialties and regions, the medical expenses of specialists range from one hundred to several hundred Australian dollars. (Medicare reimburses 85% of expert fees according to MBS expert fees. The expenses exceeding the reimbursement standard shall be paid by the patient himself)

As in China, serious illness needs to be "registered" in the hospital. Hospitals in Australia are usually divided into two types: public and private, each accounting for 50%. Public hospitals are free, but their resources are limited and the waiting time for seeing a doctor is very long. If you need hospitalization for surgery or treatment, you need to contact the insurance company before hospitalization, tell the insurance company the specific treatment plan and the hospital you are staying in, and confirm whether the medical expenses can be reimbursed. If you are hospitalized as a publicly-funded medical patient, you must accept a doctor appointed by the hospital and cannot choose the length of stay. It must be decided by the hospital according to the condition and the bed situation of the hospital. However, the medical and accommodation expenses during hospitalization will be paid by medical insurance according to MBS reimbursement standard.

However, if you choose a private hospital, it doesn't mean that you can't reimburse medical expenses. The Australian government has been encouraging people to buy private hospital insurance (excluding supplementary medical insurance) because the government's financial pressure on medical care is too great. If everyone does not buy private hospital insurance, it is really difficult for public hospitals to afford medical care in the whole country.

In order to encourage people to buy private hospital insurance and reduce the burden of public medical institutions, the government has taken some measures:

The government provides certain subsidies according to your age, personal income or family income, as shown in the following figure. Under the age of 65, the annual income is less than 90,000 Australian dollars or the family income is less than 654.38+08,000 Australian dollars (two conditions meet one), and the private hospital insurance can enjoy the government subsidy of 26.438+0%. The older you get, the higher the proportion of government subsidies you enjoy. The lower the income, the greater the proportion of subsidies.

Of course, if you just have a cold and fever and want to buy some medicine, the Australian government also provides a drug welfare plan (PBS) and medical insurance (Medicare) to provide prescription drug subsidies for patients. The government has a clear list of subsidized prescription drugs. The out-of-pocket expenses for each drug shall not exceed $37.70 at most, and the rest shall be paid by the government.