How Does a Mental Health Care Plan Work?

A GP Mental Health Care Plan and referral letter will allow you to access up to 10 Medicare rebated psychology sessions per calendar year. These are allocated to you in blocks of 6 and 4.

Initially, you will see your GP to express a desire for a Mental Health Care Plan. The appointment must be booked as a “long” or “double” appointment to allow your GP adequate time to generate the required documents and assess your eligibility. At the end of the appointment, if your GP supports your request, they will provide you with a Mental Health Care Plan and an initial referral for 6 psychology sessions. If, at the 6th session, you feel like you would benefit from further sessions, you will need to return to your doctor for a “review” and obtain a second referral granting you the remaining 4 Medicare rebated sessions (a letter of support will be provided by your psychologist). If you do not go to your GP for your referral review, you will not be eligible for further rebates. If you are wishing to activate a Mental Health Care Plan with Yin Psychology, please contact us first so we can determine availability and provide you with relevant details for your General Practitioner.

You can track each claim you have submitted with the Medicare Express Plus phone application. You will also see the amount you were rebated, the date the rebate was paid to you, and your out-of-pocket expense for the service after the rebate. If your claim is rejected, this could be due to you providing incorrect details, submitting a claim for a session you have already claimed in the past, or if you have received more than 10 Medicare rebated sessions in one calendar year (regardless of the amount of sessions your doctor refers you for). It is best to claim your rebate after each session as Medicare can’t accept claims for psychology sessions that are over two years old.

For each Medicare-rebated session at Yin Psychology, you will receive $98.95 back into your account, leaving a gap fee of $151.05 per standard 50 minute session.

Medicare Rebates

  • Step 1: See your GP

    Book a “long” appointment with your GP and advise that you are seeking a Mental Health Care Plan (bring your Medicare card and an ID!). Your GP will conduct an assessment to determine your eligibility (a MHCP is available to anyone with a diagnosed psychological condition). If eligible, they will provide you with an initial referral that allows you to access up to 6 Medicare-rebated psychology sessions.

  • Step 2: Provide us with your documents

    Your GP will provide you with two documents- a Mental Health Care Plan and a valid referral. Before your first session with Yin Psychology, we will request that you email us these documents.

  • Step 3: Sign Into Medicare

    After your first session with Yin Psychology, download the Express Plus Medicare phone application. Select “Make a Claim” and complete the steps as prompted. You will need to provide details from your GP referral and a paid invoice for the submission to go through. Your paid invoice will be emailed to you after every session.

  • Step 4: Await your rebate

    Once your claim is processed by Medicare, you will receive the rebate back into your account (if you have provided all of the correct details). You can follow this process 10 times in one calendar year (with the correct GP referrals) to obtain 10 rebates (a maximum of $966.50 annually).