Hi! We will shortly be relocating down under as PR, we are completely unaware of what we will be entitled to as far as medical and dental coverage is concerned, so any help/advice/links anybody can suggest would be gratefully received. (We are particularly concernced about child dental work - braces etc.)

Hope someone can help us!
Thanks
BeaneyBunch

Hi there

I will cover the easy one first - dentists !

Dentists here are completely private - even for children - although there was mention in the recent budget about provisions for childrens dental health. However I fear that it may be a number of years before this comes into place and may of course be revoked by a change of government in the future.

As for general medical treatment you will be entitled to GP treatment and if you need more serious surgery then you will go on the waiting list just like in the UK. However there are some major differences between the NHS and the Medicare system here in Oz. Not all GP's are the same. Some operate what is known as BULK BILLING which means that they will bill medicare directly for the treatment they have given you. Others you have to pay directly and then go to a Medicare office to get your refund. However the GP is allowed to charge you more than what Medicare will refund you which means that you will be out of pocket. This also applies if you have to see a specialist - you make the appointment to see the specialist, pay him/her at time of appointment and then claim back from Medicare - again there will be an out of pocket amount.

Private medical insurance is a much bigger thing here than what it is in the UK. Mainly because there are taxation implications related to it. However the recent budget significantly increased the threshold at which the additioal tax kicks in if you dont have private insurance.

Even with private insurance there may still be some out of pocket expenses - it doesn't neccessarily cover everything - just means that you can be sick in much more pleasant surroundings and get to the front of the queue !

Private insurance can be tailored to cover various requirements dependent on your needs and stage of life, but it still works out to be pricey.

Personally my experiences of public hospitals here is no different to those I experienced in the UK. However it does vary from hospital to hospital.

As for links I would suggest you have a look at the following:-

http://www.medicareaustralia.gov.au/

Thanks for that Colin, very helpful, I shall browse the web site to look into it some more and start researching some private insurance.
Best wishes,
BeaneyBunch

http://www.iselect.com.au/ will give you a quick estimation of private health care.

You'll quickly find out why some Aussie teeth aren't the best. No florida in the water in QLD, and $150 just to walk into a dentist, and $200 up per filling.

$6,000 for kids braces

datamile,
thanks for that link, will check it out.

Have read many threads re: cost of braces, dentist has already told me that 2 of my 4 kids need them soon. Roll on those bills!

Thanks again,
BeaneyBunch