Patients & visitors
Coming to hospital
Paying for services
- Home
- Coming to hospital
- When you leave
- Paying for services
Overview
Everyone in Australia with a current Medicare number is entitled to free treatment as a public patient in a public hospital, paid for by Medicare.
You can also choose whether you want treatment in a public or a private hospital. Your choice of hospital will depend on your condition, where you live, whether you want to choose your own doctor and whether you have private health insurance cover.
Find out more about Australia's public and private hospital systems.
Who we care for
In addition to providing care to public patients, we also provide care to:
- private patients
- Transport Accident Commission, WorkCover and Veterans' Affairs patients
- patients without a Medicare card
- patients from countries with reciprocal rights
- asylum seekers and refugees
Links and downloads
Private patients
All patients admitted to Austin Health are asked to choose whether they wish to use their private health insurance or be admitted as a public patient.
Patients requiring medical care will be prioritised based on clinical needs and single room accommodation will also be allocated based on clinical need.
As a private patient, you can expect:
- your health fund and Medicare to pay your full hospital account, with no out of pocket costs
- a bill for medications from Pharmacy. These charges are paid by both public and private patients
- a bill for television and telephone charges, if you used them. These charges are paid by both public and private patients.
For more information, read our fact sheet on choosing to be a private patient.
You can also call Patient Accounts on 03 9496 5554.
TAC, WorkCover & Veterans' Affairs
TAC, WorkCover and Veterans’ Affairs patients do not need to pay for hospital services.
Costs are covered by the third party providers.
