Our surgeons are happy to consult with patients who do not have private health insurance or who are not covered by Medicare.
Consultation fees are payable on the day in full and if you are eligible for Medicare will we process your rebate
During your consultation if you find out that you require surgery and you do not have Australian hospital private health insurance cover you have two options:
Self-funding for private surgery
Once you have attended a consultation with a surgeon we can provide you with a consolidated quote for the specific surgery that you require. There are four different fees that need to be paid for private surgery, paid directly to the separate service providers. These include:
- Surgeon - The fee is paid in full prior to surgery with a Medicare rebate paid after surgery
- Surgical Assistant - The fee is paid in full prior to surgery with a Medicare rebate paid after surgery
- Anaesthetist - The fee is paid in full prior to surgery with a Medicare rebate paid after surgery
- Hospital including accommodation and theatre fees - The fee is paid in full prior to surgery. There is no Medicare rebate available for attending a private hospital. An estimated quote is provided for the number of nights of stay that the surgeon feels necessary, be aware that if you require a longer hospital admission that further fees are payable directly to the hospital at the time of discharge.
- Surgically implanted prostheses - if relevant
- Any imaging or pathology that is required prior to surgery or during your stay in hospital
Essentially this means you are responsible for all costs of the admission.
We are unable to provide payment plans.
For further information regarding being a self-funded private patient contact our reception. Our practice manager can sometimes provide you with an indication of overall fees for certain procedures.
Transfer to the public system
If you are unable to self-fund for surgery it is sometimes possible (depending on the surgery required) for you to be transferred to the SA Health public hospital system for surgery. You will be asked to complete the relevant admission forms for a specific public hospital and will then be transferred to that hospitals surgery waiting list.
It is important to understand that once a patient has been transferred onto a public hospital surgery waitlist that the staff at the Breast & Endocrine Centre do not have any control of when your surgery is booked. Patients will be contacted by the public hospital when a date is available. We ask that patients do not call our practice for updates on wait list times. Patients will need to contact the relevant public hospital directly for all enquiries regarding their surgery.
No Medicare / International Health Insurance Holders
If you are not an Australian Permanent Resident or Citizen and are not entitled to Medicare we are happy to see you for a consultation.
You will need to pay for your consultation fee and any medical imaging required on the day of service. A detailed receipt can be provided that you can pass onto your international health insurance company (if you have one).
If you require surgery and you have international health insurance cover we will provide you with a consolidated quote. Unfortunately not all fees are covered by most international health insurance policies so we do require full payment prior to surgery. You can then claim part of the surgeons fees back from your insurance provider. The Anaesthetist and Surgical Assistant will also require full payment prior to surgery. Often the hospital can bill your insurance provider directly. The hospital will be able to advise you of any out of pocket fees once they have your insurance policy details.