Providing support for our members
Our $185m member support package included postponing premium increases for our members back in April 2020 for six months, as well as continuing to offer a support package for hospitalised members and growing our telehealth offering.
For details about the full range of restrictions that affect residents of Melbourne and regional Victoria, please visit the Dept of Health & Human Services website.
Easing of elective surgery restrictions
Thanks to everyone’s efforts, non-urgent category 2 and some category 3 elective surgeries have resumed in Victoria. Category 1 surgeries will continue unaffected by this approach.
From 28 September, all hospitals will steadily increase their elective surgery capacity, and we expect all Victorian hospitals to be back to 100% operating capacity by 23 November 2020.
For further details, please visit the Victorian Dept. of Health & Human Services website.
Dental restrictions to ease
The careful easing of restrictions means that dental practices in Melbourne metro will be able to resume non-urgent procedures from late September, such as:
- routine examinations
- temporary fillings
- simple extractions
- preventive procedures (fluoride varnish & hand scaling)
- dentures and orthodontic treatments.
Please speak with your dental practice prior to making an appointment. For more information, please visit the Australian Dental Association’s Victorian website.
For members based in regional Victoria, we recommend you contact your local dentist to understand what services they are providing as state-wide restrictions continue to ease.
Health services are open
Many health services are now open, though we recommend confirming the availability of some services with your provider.
Don’t forget, many extras services such as psychology, counselling and physiotherapy are available to eligible members via telehealth consultations.
A quick refresher on COVID-19
We know it’s been a while, so it’s worthwhile refreshing ourselves of the symptoms of COVID-19 to look out for as well as these basic safety precautions.
Symptoms
- Fever
- Runny nose
- Sore throat
- Coughing
- Chills or sweats
- Shortness of breath
- Loss in sense of taste or smell
If you’re feeling any one of these symptoms, please make sure you get tested as soon as possible.
Basic safety precautions
- Maintain safe distance from people you don’t live with
- Wash hands regularly
- If you’re waiting for COVID-19 test results, stay home until you get your results
- Wear a mask when out in public
- Follow restrictions as per your local government guidelines.
COVID-19 Health Support
Whether you're directly impacted by COVID-19, looking for advice on how to deal with social distancing, or wondering how you can access the healthcare you require, we're here to assist.
Things you should know
^OSHC members should call the Student Health and Support Line on 1800 887 283
# Overseas Health Cover excluded.
Ŧ The Financial Hardship assistance package is only available to Medibank residential health members who have held their cover for at least three months. Members with Overseas Visitors Health Cover or Overseas Workers Cover should contact Medibank on 132 331, or on 134 148 if you are an Overseas Student Health Cover member, to discuss your membership. Additionally, the 'State of disaster temporary premium reduction' only applies to residents within a declared state of disaster in Australia.
While we hope you find the information on this webpage helpful, please note that it is general in nature. It is not health advice, and is not tailored to meet your individual health needs. You should always consult a trusted health professional before making decisions about your health care. While we have prepared the information on the webpage carefully, we can’t guarantee that it is accurate, complete or up-to-date. And while we may mention goods or services provided by others, we aren’t specifically endorsing them and can’t accept responsibility for them. For these reasons we are unable to accept responsibility for any loss that may be sustained from acting on this information (subject to applicable consumer guarantees).