Funding options to see an Accredited Mental Health Social Worker

“When an actor comes to me and wants to discuss his character, I say, ‘It’s in the script.’ If he says, ‘But what’s my motivation?, ‘ I say, ‘Your salary.’”

Alfred Hitchcock

This week we are investigating funding options to attend counselling or therapy sessions.  As always if the sessions are fully or partly subsidised – there are eligibility guidelines.

The state and federal governments have mental health counselling available, both through the local Mental Health Services, health services and not for profit organisations.  Please check with these services to see if there are any criteria to access their services. Head to health and hubs are available locally and are fully subsidised.

For those with a National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) plan, please check with your plan manager to see if you have access to therapeutic services and if there is money in the plan for this.   The same applies for people who have been injured at work or in a traffic accident – please check with your provider to see if counselling is covered (Workcover or Transport Accident Commission).

For those of you working, does your employer have an Employee Assistance Program that entitles you to short term counselling?  This is a great way to commence your journey and allows a number of sessions at no cost to you.  All you need to do is call the provider and they will advise who is available in your region and make contact with a counsellor on your behalf, who will then make the appointment directly with you.

For those of you who are carers – did you know that Carer Gateway (via the Commonwealth Government) will also pay for sessions for you? 

If you have private health insurance, check to see if your plan covers Accredited Mental Health Social Workers as we are now recognised as providers for a rebate.

If you have a Mental Health Care Plan, this enables you to receive a rebate from Medicare.  There are a number of therapies and/or skills training that are applicable under this scheme and the sessions are for individual counselling not couples or family sessions.

For those aged 12 – 25 years, Headspace and eHeadspace are available.  Kids Helpline is another resource that is available for this age group.

Beyond Blue, Lifeline and 13YARN are available 24 hours a day and some have a text/type function for those who live in shared housing and privacy is an issue.

A reminder that you can also self-fund sessions, which is an investment in your personal wellbeing.

As always, should you need further assistance in navigating the system(s), please contact me directly.