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Medicare does not cover any procedures performed by general dentists.The only thing that Medicare gives to general dentists is the ability to refer for OPG x-rays, and to refer for surgical care, such as to oral & maxillofacial surgeons.
Medicare does cover all oral & maxillofacial surgical procedures performed by medically trained and HIC registered oral & maxillofacial surgeons.
For instance, Medicare covers the entire range of medical maxillofacial surgical procedures in something called the Red Schedule. To a smaller extent, Medicare covers a slightly limited OM surgical range for treatment under the Grey Schedule (for practitioners who are purely dentally trained, and who are not medical practitioners).
In essence, for a patient to attract any Medicare rebates for a dental process, they must be referred either by a medical GP (or a dentist) to an oral & maxillofacial surgeon.
The following processes are then covered by Medicare...
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Initial consultations
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All dental x-rays
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All surgical treatments (except extractions and dental implants)
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Extractions and dental implants under the Enhanced Primary Care Programme
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All review appointments (except immediate post-operative review appointments)
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All prosthetic items placed in a private hospital (under private medical insurance)
If you are not receiving Medicare entitlements for the above, your practitioner may not be formally recognised by the Federal Health Insurance Commission as a bona fide surgical specialist.
You may wish to click on the following links to find out more about Medicare in dentistry...
Other schemes also operate outside of Medicare, and which can also provide subsidy for specialist only Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery. These include...
Make sure your specialist practitioner has specialist medicare privileges so that you are not missing out on potential medicare rebates.
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