Services

If you are eligible for Medicare, Australia's public health care system, most of the medical and health care services you receive as a public patient in a public hospital are covered.

Similarly, if you are an Australian Veteran with a Gold Card, or you have a valid Transport Accident Commission (TAC) claim, a WorkCover claim, or insurance with an Australian health fund – and the services you receive are covered under your card or claim –  then most of your costs are covered.

There are some out of pocket expenses, including:

• medicines dispensed by the hospital pharmacy
• Allied Health and Ambulatory Care medical items, like medical boots and hand splints
• Sub-Acute Ambulatory Care co-payments (if you receive a six-week physio program after injury or illness, for example)
• Transition Care Program costs – for bed- or home-based care services supporting you after a stay in hospital
• Residential Aged Care costs.

In addition to the costs above, you may also incur charges for on-site Eastern Health car parking fees.

If you are not eligible for Medicare, and/or you do not have a valid TAC or WorkCover claim or Australian health insurance cover, then we will ask you to pay for treatment and care before you receive it– unless.

• you can provide proof that you are an asylum seeker or refugee
• your country has a reciprocal health care agreement with Australia. In this case:
  • there is no cost for in-hospital services, and
  • if you receive a service at an Eastern clinic and you do not have or have not applied for a Medicare card, you will be asked to pay 85% of the Medicare Benefits Schedule fee for the service. (In some cases you may be able to claim this back from Medicare. Note that Medicare does not issue Medicare cards to visitors from the Republic of Ireland and New Zealand, so if this applies to you, you will not receive a refund from Medicare.)

See our current fees and costs for Medicare ineligible patients. It includes some of the common fees and costs you may encounter at a public hospital.