The federal, state and territory governments fund a range of palliative care services that are free in the public health system, whether you receive care at home or as an inpatient.
However, sometimes you may need to contribute to the costs of care. Some examples of additional costs are:
- hiring specialised equipment for use at home
- paying for medicines
- paying for your own nursing staff if you choose to stay at home and require 24-hour assistance
- paying an excess if you have health insurance that covers palliative care and you go to a private hospital
- using respite services that charge a fee
- paying the fee of a private allied health professional, such as a psychologist, that isn’t fully covered by Medicare
- paying for complementary therapies, such as massage therapy and acupuncture.
For more specific information, contact your state or territory palliative care organisation. For contact details, call Cancer Council 13 11 20 or visit palliativecare.org.au/members.
| If you are admitted to a public hospital, palliative care unit or other facility and you have private health insurance, contact your health fund to check what is covered. Talk to your social worker about what other financial assistance is available for patients and carers from Centrelink and other organisations in your area. |
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Additional resources
Prof Katherine Clark, Clinical Director, Palliative Care, Northern Sydney Local Health District Cancer & Palliative Care Network, and Conjoint Professor, Northern Clinical School, University of Sydney, NSW; Richard Austin, Social Worker, Specialist Palliative Care Service, TAS; Sondra Davoren, Manager, Treatment and Supportive Care, McCabe Centre for Law and Cancer, VIC; A/Prof Brian Le, Director of Palliative Care, Victorian Comprehensive Cancer Centre – The Royal Melbourne Hospital and Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, VIC; Cathy McDonnell, Clinical Nurse Consultant, Concord Centre for Palliative Care, Concord Hospital, NSW; Natalie Munro, Team Leader, PalAssist, QLD; Penelope Murphy, 13 11 20 Consultant, Cancer Council NSW; Kate Reed, Nurse Practitioner Clinical Advisor, Palliative Care Australia; Merrilyn Sim, Consumer. We also thank the health professionals, consumers and editorial teams who have worked on previous editions of this title. We particularly acknowledge the input of Palliative Care Australia and their permission to quote from €œBrian’s Story €_x009d_ in A Journey Lived – a collection of personal stories from carers (2005).
View the Cancer Council NSW editorial policy.
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