FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE
GP MANAGEMENT PLAN - CHRONIC DISEASE MANAGEMENT PLAN
The Chronic Disease Management (CDM) Plan (sometimes called an Enhanced Primary Care (EPC) program) provides medicare rebates for allied health services, for people who have a chronic medical condition. You may be eligible to claim a rebate through medicare for these services if your child has a chronic condition that is being managed by your GP under an Chronic Disease Management Plan. A chronic medical condition is one that has been or will be present for at least 6 months. The CDM Plan provides a maximum of 5 total rebates per calendar year for all Allied Health services. This means that if you are accessing more than one Allied Health service, you are entitled to 5 rebates across all of the services combined, not 5 rebates per service. You will need to provide us with your referral form. Once you have given us the form you will be eligible to claim up to a maximum of 5 rebated sessions per calendar year, provided that your GP has registered your plan through medicare. The medicare rebate is currently $55.10 per service. Speech Smart Therapy provides on the spot claiming through Medicare when you are seen at Kingscliff Health Practice for a session. This means your rebate is claimed immediately and you just pay the gap fee.
HEALTH FUND INFORMATION
Private speech pathology is covered under many health fund plans. It's ALWAYS best to check that your specific level of cover entitles you to a rebate before you make an appointment. We can process your health fund claim on the spot provided you have your health fund card, and your health fund is registered with HICAPS for Speech Pathology claims. This means that when you attend Speech Pathology, all you will need to pay is the gap between your health fund benefit, and our fee. The following item numbers will help your fund identify if you are covered;
- 320 (46 to 90 minutes) or 330 (over 90 minutes) is the item number for a Speech Pathology Assessment.
- 340 is the item number for a Speech Pathology Therapy Consultation.
HICAPS
HICAPS is a system that enables our clients to process their health fund claim on the spot, in the clinic. Provided your health fund participates in HICAPS. This means no more waiting in queues at your health fund. Direct processing of your claim on the spot when you access your health service. The only payment you will be required to make is the gap between your allowed benefit and the cost of the service. Simply present your health fund card when you attend Speech Smart Therapy, whether it be for an Assessment or Therapy. After swiping your card we're able to see the size of the benefit that the health fund has paid for you, and deduct that from our total fee so that all you pay is the gap! You can access more information on the HICAPS system through the HICAPS website with specific details of item claim numbers for Speech Pathology services.
FEES
Private Patients Funding Schedule
ASSESSMENT
The cost of an initial assessment varies, based on the age of the child and the length of the assessment session. We generally allocate 90 minutes for the first assessment session. All assessment appointments include assessment analysis and a written summary or report. The initial consultation appointment is specifically for clients who have a current up to date, in-depth Speech Pathology Assessment Report from another speech pathologist that was written within the last 12 months and provides an up to date outline of the child's communication abilities.
Service Type1.5 Hour Assessment - Early Childhood
|
LocationCentre Based
|
Cost$350
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2 Hour Assessment - Primary School Age
1 Hour Assessment or Initial Consultation
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Centre Based
Centre Based
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$510
$285
|
TREATMENT
Most clinic based therapy sessions are 45 or 60 minutes. Shorter, 30 minute sessions are only available in exceptional circumstances. These following rates are for privately paying clients effective 1 July 2024:
Service Type45 Minute Therapy Session
1 Hour Therapy Session
45 Minute Therapy Session
1 Hour Therapy Session |
LocationCentre Based - Kingscliff Studio
Centre Based - Kingscliff Studio
Off Site
Off Site
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Cost$140
$190
$145 - travel fee may apply
$190 - travel fees may apply
|
1 Hour School/Preschool/Child Care Visit
1 Hour Planning/Team Meeting
|
Off Site
Off Site
|
$190 - travel fees may apply
$190 - travel fees may apply
|
FUNDED CLIENTS AND OTHER FEES
Assessment and therapy rates depend on the source of funding. There are different schedules of fees for services privately funded (including health funds and medicare sessions) and for services accessed by NDIS funding. Services such as those covered by government funding are slightly higher, this is due to the additional administration cost required to access this funding. Higher fees apply for services off site, complex diagnostic assessments (any age) and NDIS clients.
Additional Fees – An NDIS plan review summary or assessment report will be charged at the NDIS hourly rate of $193.99.
Additional Fees – An NDIS plan review summary or assessment report will be charged at the NDIS hourly rate of $193.99.
Children With NDIS Self Managed and Plan Managed Funding Packages
You can view information about NDIS prices here: http://www.ndis.gov.au/providers/pricing-and-payment . Price includes up to 10km travel. Travel over 10km is an extra charge and is charged according to the NDIS travel rates based on time spent travelling to and from the appointment. Please request a quote if additional travel is required. We are able to provide support for children who's parents or carer are Plan Managing or Self Managing their NDIS package. Please contact Speech Smart Therapy if you would like further information regarding speech pathology support for your child.
Cancellation and Fail to Attend Policy
In the event that an appointment is cancelled on the day of the appointment or missed without any contact with the therapist a fee needs to be charged to cover the time spent preparing for the session. Families are asked to contact their therapist to allow 48 hours notice to advise any change in appointments or an inability to attend. This will avoid any necessity to charge a cancellation fee. Late Notification Cancellation on the day of the appointment will incur a cancellation fee equivalent to the full scheduled fee as this doesn't allow time for the appointment to be offered to another client awaiting an appointment. This cancellation fee needs to be paid prior to attending the next scheduled appointment.