Osteopathic services

What are Osteopathic services

Treatments provided by an osteopath to help muscle and joint function and reduce pain.

Who can receive it

You may be able to receive osteopathic services if you have a clinical need and a:

• Veteran Gold Card; or 
• White Veteran Card and your treatment is for an accepted service-related condition

What you can receive

If you are accepted for osteopathic services your osteopath may:

• provide you with a record and plan for your treatment
• work out how much treatment you need
• work with you to improve your muscle and joint function

From 1 October 2019, referrals to this service will be under the Allied Health Services treatment cycle. This means that a referral will last for up to 12 sessions or 1 year, whichever ends first.

These treatment cycles place you at the centre of your care and the general practitioner (GP) as your care coordinator.

There are no limits to the number of treatment cycles you can have.

You can also have:

• a separate treatment cycle for each allied health service you need; and
• treatment cycles for different allied health services at the same time

How you access

To access osteopathic services you will need to get a referral to an osteopath covered by the Medicare Benefits Scheme (MBS) from:

• your general practitioner (GP)
• a medical specialist
• your treating doctor in hospital
• a hospital discharge planner

If you have a current referral, your osteopath may refer you to another osteopath.

Things you should know

• You may not be able to receive similar treatments for your condition on the same day. Similar treatments may be physiotherapy, chiropractic treatment or osteopathy.
• Let your osteopath know about any similar treatments you've had in the past 12 months.
• If you get a bill from your osteopath please contact us before paying anything.
• If you're treated as a private patient or through Medicare we may not be able to pay for your treatment.

What to tell us

Let us know if:

• you are billed by your osteopath
• your contact details change
• your home address changes