Fees & Rebates

Medicare’s Better Access to Mental Health initiative is a government scheme that provides a partial rebate on psychology sessions to people with mental health symptoms.

To be eligible, you must receive a referral letter and Mental Health Care Plan from a GP, psychiatrist or paediatrician, which you can then pass on to a psychologist. 

By receiving a referral and a Mental Health Care Plan, you will be entitled to a rebate from Medicare for part of each session fee. You will be eligible for this rebate on up to 10 sessions per calendar year (Jan-Dec). This rebate only applies to individual psychology sessions – unfortunately not for couples therapy or psychometric assessments, as well as some other kinds of services. We can advise you if your sessions are entitled to rebate or not, so please do get in touch and ask if you are not sure.

After your 6th session, you are usually required to return to your GP for a review of progress and to receive an additional referral letter to receive the rebate on your next 4 sessions. We will discuss this process with you at the first session as well as on session 6, and do our best to remind you about returning to see your GP when you reach this stage. 

If you have any questions about claiming Medicare rebates, feel free to reach out to us. Our administration team is well-versed in the workings of the scheme and will be happy to assist you with the fine details. For further information, you can also visit the Australian Psychological Society and the Department of Health websites.

Click here for a flowchart of the process

We value honesty and so want to explain an important point about the Medicare rebate system, and the expectations it can set up for new clients. 

Although Medicare provides a rebate on up to 10 sessions per year, it is important to note that this is an arbitrary figure that does not reflect the evidence-base on effective outcomes. Although some people will experience substantial and meaningful change after 10 sessions, it is also true that many people will require more than 10 sessions in a year to meet their goals and/or to maximally reduce symptom severity and provide long term, lasting change. We think it is important that you know this upfront. 

Remember – 10 sessions can still result in significant change, however it is often the case that more sessions are required to reach the level of change you want for yourself. We will discuss this with you along the way, noting that people will have different preferences and capacity about continuing beyond the 10 session mark. We understand these differences, and we will work with you to make the most out of your time with us – no matter how short or extensive. 

Depending on your circumstances, you may be entitled to a rebate on some sessions through other Medicare initiatives. Click below to read fact-sheets about the other Medicare initiatives

• Helping Children with Autism (HCWA): Medicare funding for psychology
• Medicare rebates for Pregnancy and Perinatal Period: Psychology sessions
• Medicare rebates for people of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent: Psychology sessions
• Medicare rebates for Chronic disease management: Psychology services
• Medicare rebates for Children with Disability: Psychology sessions