These are two questions that our admin team get asked quite regularly.

Life can be challenging at times and during these difficult stages you may need to reach out to someone for assistance or emotional support.

What is a Mental Health Care Plan?

A Mental Health Care Plan or MHCP, is a support plan for individuals who require some additional psychological support or assistance with mental health issues. 

Under a Mental Health Care Plan you will be eligible to receive a rebate from Medicare on up to 10 individual sessions with a psychologist per calendar year.

For further information on the rebates, please visit our Rates & Rebates page.

How do I get a Mental Health Care Plan?

To obtain a MHCP, you will need to book an appointment with a doctor/GP (General Practitioner).  If you don’t have a regular doctor, you can search online for a local medical centre (for example, HealthDirect) or you could speak to a family member or a friend and ask for a recommendation.  If you are a student, your school, TAFE or University may have onsite medical services that you could utilise. 

When you book your appointment, mention that you would like to talk about getting a Mental Health Care Plan, that way the doctor will know in advance, and they will be able to set aside a suitable amount of time for you.

When you have your appointment, try and be as open and honest as you can about what has been going on & your concerns. Your doctor may ask you some personal questions, and it is understandable that you may feel nervous or worried about opening up to them, but please remember that they are there to support you, they are trained professionals and everything you talk about during your appointment is confidential.

The doctor may also ask you to complete a short questionnaire about how you have been feeling recently.

Tip:  Before you visit your GP, it may be useful to write down a list of things that you would like to mention in the appointment.  That way, if you are feeling nervous or are worried you might forget something, you can easily refer to your notes during your consultation.

Lastly, give yourself a pat on the back! Sometimes the first step is the hardest. By doing this, you are one step closer to getting the support & tools that you need!