GP Mental Health Care Plans

Cause Effect Psychology accept GP Mental Health Care Plans (GP MHCP). They are completed by a GP or Psychiatrist, pending you meet certain eligibility requirements.

Your GP MHCP referral will allow you to be eligible for up to 10 rebated sessions per calendar year for individual sessions and another 10 for group sessions. However, your initial referral will be for 6 sessions. After 6 sessions your psychologist will need to write a progress letter to let your doctor and request an re-referral for an additional 4 sessions should they consider ongoing treatment beneficial.

It is your responsibility to ensure you meet with your GP at each re-referral point so to ensure your Medicare rebate remains active. Failure to do so will mean that your appointment will need to be billed privately. This is out of our hands as Medicare sets the rebate process and not us. We do our best to remind clients of this responsibility to meet with their GP’s at each referral point when engaged in psychological treatment under a GP MHCP.

Please note, you can choose to see any psychologist of your preference, despite what your GP MHCP specifies as the referring provider. You do not need to go back to your GP to have the psychology practice or provider changed. Your GP will be aware of your selection upon your psychologist accepting your referral via written correspondence, usually following your first or second session.

Importantly, your GP MHCP does not entitle you to ‘free’ psychology sessions under any circumstances. Your GP MHCP allows you to be eligible for a rebate of around half the session cost from Medicare. You can not access this Medicare rebate without a GP MHCP. You may be able to receive a rebate from your Private Health provider if you do not seek to obtain a MHCP.

Please review our fees and referral types to ensure Cause Effect Psychology are an appropriate service for your personal circumstances.

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