Medicare and Private Health Insurance

[QSfamily]

We've been looking into private health insurance and I'm not too sure about what our status is on a 457.

On one of the websites, I looked at it says there is a reciprocal agreement with the UK and as such we would have to pay the medicare surchcharge or levy.

Does this mean that we can get medicare but have to pay a supplement or supplement medicare with basic hospital cover private medical insurance. There appear to have been a change from Nov 2007.

Also when I contacted IMAN they told me that my kids eczema and food intolerances would be considered preexisting conditions and therefore excluded from the policy for 12months. That would mean we have to pay full whack for treatment and alternative milk products which we get on prescription under NHS.

Manchester Unity didnt comment about the preexisting condition but whether they just read the part about prescriptions and missed comment that they already have the condition....???

How is child health dealt with in Australia? Are we not covered for anything at all then under 457 visa in spite of this reciprocal agreeement thing?

Anybody able to give me some guidance.

[kaz101]

Hi QSfamily,

If you search through the posts in this forum I know that someone else mentioned that they were on a temp visa and they still got Medicare (I thought they would have to pay).

Have to contacted Medicare directly to ask them? Their link is in the "PLEASE READ..." post towards the top of the forum.

I think that most insurances here do not cover pre-existing conditions for 12 months. You may need to contact an insurance broker to find out if there are insurances that will cover existing conditions and if so how much they cost.

I don't have any personal experience of this but I can say that when I went to the GP I still had to pay even though I'm a permanent resident. I think that the charge was about A$51 and I get a rebate from Medicare which made it about A$32 (from memory). And yes that has to be paid every time I see a GP. The health system here is very different from the UK!

Regards,
Karen

[ashmalog]

Originally Posted by kaz101

Hi QSfamily,

when I went to the GP I still had to pay even though I'm a permanent resident. I think that the charge was about A$51 and I get a rebate from Medicare which made it about A$32 (from memory).
Regards,
Karen

i just wish the UK was like that, £20 for a GP visit would stop some of the rubbish that walks through the doors. Eire charges for GP visits and they have less DNA's and people actually are proactive with their own healthcare. its about time UK residents stopped abusing the NHS system.

[kaz101]

Originally Posted by ashmalog

i just wish the UK was like that, £20 for a GP visit would stop some of the rubbish that walks through the doors.

Rubbish? Isn't that a bit harsh?

I think my old GP in the UK did charge if someone didn't turn up so they can put incentives into place. Don't forget that the NHS is for everyone and not just for those that can afford to pay.

Here in Australia I wouldn't want to be paying that amount if I was going to the GP on a regular basis since it would soon add up. There was a time that I had to go to my GP in the UK every week for a while (for blood pressure checks) and that would add up to several hundred dollars here.

Regards,
Karen

[Sunnywa]

You would need to take out private health insurance on a 457

check out your options on
Private Health Insurance Australia - iSelect

regards
Sunnywa