A simple guide to accessing Medicare rebates for sessions at Life Matters Psychologists in Hamilton
How to get a Medicare Mental Health Care Plan in Newcastle
If you’re considering seeing a psychologist, a MHCP from your GP can make sessions more affordable. Read on to find out more about how to get one step by step, or call our Client Care team who can guide you through the process so you don’t have to navigate it alone.
A Mental Health Care Plan is created by your GP. It includes a referral to see a psychologist (and sometimes other supports such as medication). With an MHCP, you can access up to 10 Medicare-rebated psychology sessions per calendar year, which reduces your out-of-pocket costs.
At Life Matters, rebates currently bring the cost of a standard session with our psychologists down significantly once applied.
What is a Mental Health Care Plan?
Initial 6 sessions: You’ll start with 6 rebated sessions. After this, your psychologist provides an update to your GP, who may refer you for up to 4 more sessions in the same year.
Calendar year limit: You can claim a maximum of 10 Medicare-rebated sessions per year.
Referrals are flexible: Even if your GP addressed your referral to another clinic, you can still use it at Life Matters Psychologists. There’s no need to go back to the GP to change your plan.
Referrals don’t expire: They remain valid beyond the year they were written, but the 10-session limit resets each January, so it’s worth keeping track.
We’ll support you: Our Client Care team can liaise with your GP and keep track of how many sessions you’ve used, so you don’t have to worry about the admin.
5 things to know about a MHCP
Book a GP appointment – Tell your GP you’d like to discuss a Mental Health Care Plan.
Prepare notes – Write down your symptoms and challenges, even if they fluctuate day-to-day.
Receive your referral – Your GP will prepare the plan and either email it to us or give you a paper copy.
Book your appointment – Call our Hamilton office or use our online booking system to secure your first session. Our Client Care team will handle the rest.
How to get a MHCP in 4 simple steps
First time seeking support: You visit your GP, receive a referral, and book your first 6 sessions with one of our psychologists. After these, we update your GP and you may be referred for 4 more sessions if needed.
Changing clinics: Your referral lists another practice, but you’d prefer to see us. No problem, we can accept it without requiring changes.
Telehealth: If you can’t attend in person, you can use your MHCP for online Telehealth sessions with any of our psychologists.
What it looks like in practice
If you have a referral already, you can book straight away. If not, simply book a GP appointment and bring your plan to your first session. Our Client Care team will take care of the details.
Ready to get started?
FAQs
-
To obtain a GP referral under the MHCP (Mental Health Care Plan) pathway:
Book a GP appointment, mentioning in advance that you want to discuss a Mental Health Care Plan so the GP allocates extra time.
During consultation, the GP will assess your mental health concerns, symptoms, history, and functional impact.
If they determine it's clinically appropriate, the GP will write an MHCP/mental health referral, including information about treatment goals and types of services recommended.
Even if the referral names a psychologist, you can choose any Medicare-eligible psychologist who accepts MHCP referrals.
Bring the referral to your psychology sessions so rebates can be claimed.
This is standard under Australia’s Better Access initiative.
The Medicare rebate covers roughly 65% of the cost of each session, leaving you with just 35% out of pocket. The fees vary slightly depending on the psychologist, so for detailed info on costs, we suggest you contact our Client Care team and they'll talk you through the options.
-
Under the Better Access/MHCP scheme, eligible individuals may access up to 10 individual psychology (or allied mental health) sessions per calendar year.
The typical structure is:
Initial referral covers 6 sessions, then
A review (by the referring GP) may allow for 4 additional sessions in that same calendar year.
If you don’t use all 10 sessions by year’s end, they don’t carry over to the next year.
-
The MHCP referral itself does not expire strictly at 12 months in many cases.
However:
The session allocation (10 sessions per calendar year) resets every 1 January, so unused sessions won’t carry over.
If your referral is older than a certain period or there’s been significant change in your condition, the GP may choose to review or issue a fresh plan.
So in practice, you don’t “lose” your plan, but the window for claiming the 10 sessions is bound by calendar years and clinical appropriateness.
-
Yes, Telehealth sessions are eligible under the MHCP/Better Access initiative, where clinically appropriate.
Key points:
The same limits (10 individual sessions per year) apply whether sessions are in-person or via Telehealth.
Telehealth eligibility may depend on your location (especially in rural/remote areas), but recent policy updates have broadened Telehealth scope.
-
No. In general, you do not need a brand new MHCP referral just because you change psychologists. You can continue to use the same referral for the remaining allowed sessions within the calendar year, provided the referral is still valid and the new psychologist is Medicare-eligible.
However:
The GP may be asked to provide a letter or updated note indicating continuation, especially if the new psychologist requests clarity.
If your circumstances have significantly changed or the referral is very old, the GP might choose to issue a fresh plan.
-
Session fees vary; your gap amount depends on your psychologist’s full fee minus Medicare rebate.
Example:
Clinical Psychologist fee: $250
Medicare rebate: $145.20
Out of pocket fee: $104.80
-
Yes, children and adolescents can be eligible for a Mental Health Care Plan if their mental health presentation warrants it.
The process is the same: GP assessment, referral, and then psychology sessions.
-
In short, the MHCP is a specialised, rebate-enabled referral for mental health support, not just a basic GP referral.
A standard GP referral often refers you to a specialist or other medical service (e.g. to a psychiatrist or imaging services). It does not automatically enable Medicare rebates for psychology.
A Mental Health Care Plan (MHCP) is a structured plan under the Better Access scheme, specifically tailored to mental health, which allows access to Medicare rebates for psychological services.
The MHCP includes treatment goals, progress reviews, and coordination with your health team, not just a referral to a service.
Get in touch
Give us a call, send an email or fill in the form if you want someone from our Client Care team to call or email more information.