Hearing Aids

[annalong]

Hi been in OZ fir 1yr and have a permanent visa CPV. Me and my husband get Irish pensions but not Australian ones, but they have a reciprecol arrangement with Ireland. Does that mean we don't have to wait 2yrs to qualify for commonwealth senior card?

And I have now to have two hearing aids at a cost of $3,500, does anyone know if I can get help with this or will it effect the assurance of support my daughter lodged.

Tried to find out on the Gov web site but I find it totally confusing HELP PLEASE.:wacko:

[Linday]

Hi Annalong

 

We are also here on a CPV. Oz also has a reciprocal health agreement with the UK, but as far as I am aware it is only so that you can get emergency medical. As I understand it everyone has to wait 2 years to qualify for the Commonwealth Seniors card, plus be 65.

 

Do you have a Medicare card? Did you get assessed for the hearing aids through your GP? Sometimes they will put a care plan in place for ongoing conditions so that you don't have to pay for things that are not normally covered. For example, Medicare does not normally pay for Podiatry, but if you have an ongoing problem with hip pain for example, the GP will put a care plan in place and you get up to 5 visits free.

 

My husband also has hearing aids and we have taken out basic private health insurance which will cover this and other things that are not covered by Medicare such as dentistry and spectacles and you can select other things for the basic cover. It costs around $60 a month for both of us. There is a waiting period for some things so it is better to sign up sooner rather than later.

 

This does not affect the Assurance of Support. Have a look here for payments which affect the AOS:

http://www.humanservices.gov.au/customer/services/centrelink/assurance-of-support

 

Whereabouts are you in Australia?

[annalong]

Thank you Lindsay,

We are have visitors med cards and are in the process of applying for full ones in the next few days. We are 67 and 68 yrs old and there is def an agreement with the Republic of Ireland as thats how we got our first med cards. Can't really afford private health care as after selling our house in Ireland for a pittance we are pretty much down to our last few bucks. Our Doctor sent me for a hearing test but didn't mention anything about a care plan, so I had to pay for the test myself. We are going to visit Centre Link to see if they can offer any assistance with the purchase of the aids.

We live in Avoca Beach NSW. its where our Daughter and family live, we are renting a house here because the cost of the visa's took just about all of our money from the sale of our house. Having said that we love it here and wouldn't think of going back to Ireland.

I will let you know how we get on, the info may be of use to someone else.

Regards

Ann.

 

 

Hi Annalong

 

We are also here on a CPV. Oz also has a reciprocal health agreement with the UK, but as far as I am aware it is only so that you can get emergency medical. As I understand it everyone has to wait 2 years to qualify for the Commonwealth Seniors card, plus be 65.

 

Do you have a Medicare card? Did you get assessed for the hearing aids through your GP? Sometimes they will put a care plan in place for ongoing conditions so that you don't have to pay for things that are not normally covered. For example, Medicare does not normally pay for Podiatry, but if you have an ongoing problem with hip pain for example, the GP will put a care plan in place and you get up to 5 visits free.

 

My husband also has hearing aids and we have taken out basic private health insurance which will cover this and other things that are not covered by Medicare such as dentistry and spectacles and you can select other things for the basic cover. It costs around $60 a month for both of us. There is a waiting period for some things so it is better to sign up sooner rather than later.

 

This does not affect the Assurance of Support. Have a look here for payments which affect the AOS:

http://www.humanservices.gov.au/customer/services/centrelink/assurance-of-support

 

Whereabouts are you in Australia?

[Linday]

Hi Annalong

Maybe when you have your full Medicare cards you could find a doctor who bulk bills? If you can, then you may be able to find somewhere that bulk bills for things such as hearing tests etc. Do you have a NSW Seniors card? You could maybe find somewhere which offers discounts on hearing aids for Seniors. Or maybe you could wait until you are eligible for the CSHC. I am not sure what discounts you may get with this. It seems to vary from state to state.

 

I certainly understand how difficult and expensive it is here with regards to health costs. We are finding the cost of prescriptions particularly expensive, Fortunately my husband will be eligible for the CSHC in October so that should ease things a little. We are also renting in WA and currently sharing with my daughter. Rents here in WA are astronomical. We still have the money from our house sale in the UK, but realise that it won't go very far here! Just hoping the exchange rate might go in our favour. Good luck and please let us know how you got on.

[Petals]

Once you get your medicare cards you should also apply to centrelink for a medical card as you are pensioners. With this you can go to any hearing place and the government pays for tests and they also pay for hearing aids, however if you want the fancy ones you have pay for them yourselves. If you visit the Centrelink site or phone Centrelink and go to the Aged department they are very helpful.