MyMedicare

REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN

If you would like to register with MyMedicare and choose our clinic as your preferred medical centre, you can now register online or in person at our clinic.

To register online:

First, you will need to start the registration process in your Medicare Online Account or Express Plus Medicare Mobile app. Find our medical centre in the list of registered GP clinics in MyMedicare before you start. Our medical centre staff will then accept the registration in the MyMedicare system. For an easy guide, you can follow these steps to register. When registering online, if you cannot find our clinic in the list of medical centres that are registered with MyMedicare, please check back later in the month, as we may still be going through the set-up process in the system.

To register in person:

Alternatively, you can visit our medical centre and fill out a registration form at reception. By signing the form, you are giving consent to our medical centre staff to register you in MyMedicare. Our practice staff will then complete the registration in the MyMedicare system for you.

WHAT IS MYMEDICARE?

MyMedicare is a new voluntary patient registration model that will provide some extra Medicare benefits to all patients who have a Medicare Card or Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) Veteran card. You will only receive these additional benefits by registering your preferred clinic with Medicare.

Patients who have had two face-to-face consults with GPs in the clinic in the past 24 months can register for MyMedicare from 1 October 2023.

Make our clinic your home clinic!

DOES IT COST ANYTHING TO REGISTER?

No, registration is free and optional.

HOW WILL IT BENEFIT ME?

The goal of MyMedicare is to strengthen the relationship you have with your preferred doctor and medical centre. Attending the same clinic and seeing the same GPs for your medical appointments will allow your chosen doctor to provide you with better ongoing care. You can still attend other clinics, however, you will receive some extra benefits at your chosen clinic. If you want to choose our medical centre as your ‘home clinic’, you will need to register with MyMedicare, select our medical centre and choose your preferred GP. We welcome our current and past patients to choose our medical centre as their preferred home clinic.

Other benefits you will receive include:

• All registered patients will have access to longer MBS-funded telehealth consultations (telephone calls) with GPs at your registered ‘home clinic’ (Levels C & D). This means you and your GP can have more in-depth conversations (over 20 minutes) about your health. Medicare will provide a larger rebate for these longer telehealth consults to help make it more affordable for you, but only at your registered home clinic.

• From 1 November, the Australian Government is introducing a ‘Triple Bulk Billing’ incentive when GPs bulk bill children 15 and under, pensioners and concession card holders to help subsidise the rising costs of health care. This incentive may also apply to longer MBS telehealth consultations (Levels C, D and E) with your GP at your registered home clinic.

These initial benefits for registered patients will be expanded by the Australian Government over time, so registering our medical centre as your preferred ‘home clinic’ is important.

DO I NEED TO REGISTER?

No, registration is voluntary. You can choose not to register, but you will miss out on the extra Medicare benefits that you could be receiving by choosing our medical centre as your preferred ‘home clinic’.

WHEN WILL REGISTRATIONS OPEN AND CLOSE?

All patients can register for MyMedicare from 1 October 2023. There is no close date or deadline to register.

CAN I REGISTER WITH MORE THAN ONE CLINIC?

No, the goal of MyMedicare is to help strengthen the relationship you have with your preferred medical centre and doctor. Children are exempt from needing to have visited their GP twice in the past 24 months.

DO I NEED TO REGISTER CHILDREN?

Registration is optional for all patients. If you want to receive the MyMedicare benefits for your children, you will need to register each child with MyMedicare and choose their preferred clinic and GP. A parent/guardian must register a child under 14 years and provide consent on their behalf. This will need to be completed at the practice via the paper form only.

Young people aged 14 to 17 years can register and provide consent without a parent/guardian. If a parent or guardian registers a minor aged between 14 and 17 years, the minor will need to tick a box declaring they have provided informed consent.

AM I “LOCKED IN” TO A CLINIC ONCE I REGISTER?

No. You can visit any medical centre or doctor you like; however, you will only receive the extra Medicare benefits at your chosen ‘home’ clinic. If you change your mind, you can also unregister at any time.

More information is available here: https://www.health.gov.au/our-work/mymedicare?language=en