Appointment Types
We welcome all new patients to our clinics. You do not need a referral to see a podiatrist, however if you are attending one of our clinics under one of the services listed below it is important to read the following.
Medicare and DVA
PV Podiatry provides Medicare cover for clients under the Enhanced Primary Care Program and to the Department of Veterans card holders. A valid referral from your general practitioner must be presented on your initial consultation.
Health Fund Providers
No referral is required. PV Podiatry is a Medibank Private preferred provider which means that extra cover is available for such members, such as a 15% discount. We also provide services for most Private Health Funds and through the HI-CAPS and IBA machine, Funds can be billed directly using the membership card. The subsequent gap must be paid at this time.
Insurance Claims
PV Podiatry welcomes all patients who have vehicle accident insurance claims. The patient is required to provide there claim number and any other relevant information. It must be noted that we are unable to extend prolonged credit.
Work Cover
PV Podiatry welcomes all patients who are covered by Workcover. It must be noted however, that if a claim is not accepted then the patient is responsible for settling the account. The patient is also required to provide their claim number, name of insurer, contact details of employer as well as other relevant information.
Home Visit Service
A home visiting service is available by appointment.
Medicare EPC Program
The ‘Enhanced Primary Care Program’ (EPC) is a Medicare funded program aimed at patients suffering chronic pain conditions such as diabetes, arthritis and other various acute conditions.
This program allows you to have up to 5 allied health services within the calender year and the referral is valid for a 12 month period. Consultations under this program are bulk billed through Medicare.
A doctor must complete a general assessment to check if you are eligible for the program and complete a ‘Team Care Arrangement’ for you.
You must have an up to date Medicare EPC Referral in place before your first appointment
At PV Podiatry your EPC visits are bulk billed through the Easy Claim Hicaps terminal, which is processed electronically to Medicare. Transactions are processed to Medicare at the time of consultation, however we will not know if the claim is approved and paid for 24 hours.
You must have an up to date Medicare EPC Referral in place before your first appointment, otherwise your claim will be rejected by Medicare. We cannot back date claims.
The EPC referrals are valid for 12 months, once your referral has been completed or expired you must return to your doctor for a review and to arrange a new referral, the podiatrist can let you know when your visits are used, but it is ultimately the patient’s responsibility to arrange referrals with their doctor and keep track on services used.
We do offer a home visit service for our patient’s, where the EPC referral can be used, a small gap may apply due to the time and duration of the consultation.
Any additional gaps, fees or sale of therapeutic appliances are payable by the patient and not included in the Medicare scheme.