Guild Update 20 Dec 16: PBS co-payment, Pensioner Concession Card changes
December 20, 2016
FROM 1 January 2017, the PBS co-payment charge will rise in line with rises in the Consumer Price Index (CPI). The new co-payments are $38.80 (was $38.30) for general patients and $6.30 (was $6.20) for concessional patients. Rises reflect a 1.3% CPI indexation (rounded up to the nearest 10 cents) which is lower than has been seen in recent years. Also on 1 January 2017, as a result of changes to the asset test for pensioners, some pensioners will lose entitlement to their Pensioner Concession Card. Instead these pensioners will become eligible for a Low Income Health Care Card and, if they are pension age, will also receive a Commonwealth Seniors Health Card.These new cards cannot physically be sent before 1 January 2017 so customers will not get their new cards until mid-January 2017. Centrelink is seeking assistance to make sure customers are able to receive their concession entitlement on prescriptions they need to fill before their new cards arrive. Until their cards arrive, these customers can provide their Centrelink Customer Reference Number which is on a letter from Centrelink or on their expired Pensioner Concession Card. This unique reference number can be used to confirm that the customer's concessions entitlement still exists.
The above article was sent to subscribers in Pharmacy Daily's issue from 20 Dec 16To see the full newsletter, see the embedded issue below or CLICK HERE to download Pharmacy Daily from 20 Dec 16
