From November 1st , Medicare will raise the rebate for heart health checks to 100 per cent, meaning more than 1.5 million Australians at risk of heart attack or stroke will have free access to GP-administered heart health checks.
This follows the February Heart Foundation and News Corp Australia’s award-winning Serial Killer campaign, which saw the Federal Government introduce the new Medicare rebate at 85 per cent, for the nation’s first heart health screening program.
The Serial Killer campaign highlighted the 51 Australians who die every day from heart disease, with Heart Foundation General Manager of Heart Health and Research Bill Stavrevski stating that this change would reimburse GPs for their time and allow practices to prioritise cardiovascular disease prevention.