Funding
Government & Private Services for funding Speech Pathology and Occupational Therapy
Government initiatives and some ‘extras cover’ under private health insurance policies provide funding support for speech pathology and occupational therapy.
Read below to learn more.
Medicare
Chronic Disease Management Plan (Enhanced Primary Care Plan)
The Chronic Disease Management (CDM) Plan is a Medicare initiative that is available to children and adults with Chronic Care needs. Your General Practitioner can work with us to provide therapy to your child under the CDM program. Under this scheme, Medicare rebates for up to 5 sessions of Allied Health therapy, including Speech Pathology, are claimable per calendar year. If you are eligible for this program, make sure you bring your referral to your first session so we can ensure you get all the necessary paperwork to claim your rebate.
For more information about the CDM program follow this link to the Victorian Department of Health or contact your General Practitioner.
Helping Children with Autism (HCWA) or Better Start - Medicare Items
Children under the age of thirteen can access HCWA and Better Start Medicare items available for assessment, diagnosis, and the creation of a treatment and management plan. Once a treatment and management plan is in place, items are available for sessions with a range of allied health professionals including psychologists, speech pathologists, and occupational therapists.
To be eligible your child must:
Be aged 0-13
For HCWA, a diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder
or,
For Better Start have a diagnosis of moderate or greater vision or hearing impairment, including deaf/blindness, cerebral palsy, Down, Fragile X, Prader WIlli, Williams, Angelman, Kabuki, Smith-Magenis, Cornelia de Lange, Cri du Chat syndromes, Microcephaly or Rett's disorder
The services include:
Up to four diagnostic / assessment services to assist the referring practitioner with diagnosis or to contribute to a child’s treatment and management plan (for a child under thirteen years of age).
Up to twenty treatment sessions (for a child under fifteen years of age, providing they have a treatment and management plan in place by thirteen).
For more information see the Department of Health website or contact your General Practitioner.
Private Health Insurance
Many Private Health Insurance packages provide 'extras' cover which may entitle you to claim rebates for Speech pathology and occupational therapy sessions. Each provider and level of cover is different and we suggest contacting your provider to ensure your child is covered and how much the fund will rebate
Government Support
National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS)
The NDIS aims to provide community linking and individualised support for people with permanent and significant disability, their families, and carers.
The NDIS supports people with a permanent and significant disability which affects their ability to take part in everyday activities.
The scheme aims to:
Identify supports to help people with disability to live their lives and to achieve their goals, including independence, community involvement, education, employment, health, and well-being; and provide people with disability choice and control over how, when and where their reasonable and necessary supports are provided and offer the certainty of access to support over their lifetime.
For more information on eligibility please refer to the NDIS website.
Little Birds Speech Pathology are accepting self-funded and plan managed NDIS clients. We cannot take on NDIA managed participants. If you would like to change how you are funded, please contact your Local Area Coordinator.