How to Use a Mental Health Treatment Plan for Counselling in Swan Hill
If the cost of counselling is the thing stopping you from booking, a Mental Health Treatment Plan is usually the first step to take. It does not make sessions free, however it does take a genuine chunk off the fee, and you do not need to see a psychologist to use it.
Accredited Mental Health Social Workers (AMHSWs) are recognised Medicare providers under Better Access. At Mind Over Matters that means face-to-face sessions in Swan Hill, or telehealth across Victoria and the rest of Australia, can attract a Medicare rebate when your GP writes a plan and referral.
What a Mental Health Treatment Plan is
A Mental Health Treatment Plan (sometimes called a Mental Health Care Plan) is a short plan your GP writes with you. It states what you are finding hard, what you may have tried, and who you are being referred to for focused psychological strategies.
It is not a test you have to pass. Anxiety, depression, trauma, grief, burnout, adjustment after a health scare or a relationship ending, and the quieter “I am not okay and I am not sure why” presentations are all common reasons GPs write these plans.
Once the plan and referral are in place, Medicare will rebate a set number of sessions with an eligible provider each calendar year.
You do not have to see a psychologist
This is the part that still surprises people in the Mallee.
Medicare Better Access includes Accredited Mental Health Social Workers as well as psychologists. AMHSWs are social workers who have met extra AASW mental health criteria: supervised mental health practice, ongoing professional development, and demonstrated use of focused psychological strategies. The AASW credential is what lets us apply for a Medicare provider number.
That is really important in our regional town, as waitlists for clinical psychology can be long. An AMHSW offers structured, evidence-based therapy, including approaches such as neuroaffirming CBT, ACT, schema-informed work, motivational interviewing, and EMDR, with the same Better Access pathway.
If you want the difference in one line: we work with your symptoms and the life around them. Housing stress, caring load, neurodivergence, workplace strain and family systems are not a side note. They are part of the work.
How many sessions and what you pay
Under current Better Access arrangements, a Mental Health Treatment Plan generally gives you up to 10 individual sessions in a calendar year (your GP reviews after the first six). Group sessions sit in a separate bucket and are less relevant for most people coming to us.
At Mind Over Matters, as of 1 June 2026:
General counselling (50 minutes): $185
Medicare rebate with a valid plan and referral: $89.50 per eligible session
Approximate gap: $95.50
Rebates can change when Medicare updates the MBS. We will tell you the current figure when you book. Please note that we are a private practice and do not bulk bill. If the gap is not possible right now, say so we can point you toward local low-cost or public options rather than leave you stuck.
You do not need a plan if you are paying privately, using NDIS (self-managed or plan-managed), WorkSafe, TAC, DVA, or some private health extras. The plan is only required if you want the Medicare rebate.
How to get the plan
Book a longer GP appointment and say you want a Mental Health Treatment Plan and a referral for counselling.
Take this to the appointment:
Referral details
Mind Over Matters
40 McCallum Street, Swan Hill VIC 3585
0436 965 284
info@mindovermatters.com.au
www.mindovermatters.com.au
Your GP can email the plan to us, or you can upload it through the Contact page before the first session. Bring it along if that is easier.
Then you can go ahead and book. We claim the rebate for you when the referral is on file and then you pay the gap.
Face-to-face in Swan Hill, telehealth everywhere else
The plan works for telehealth as well as in-person sessions.
We see people in the rooms at 40 McCallum Street, and we see people from Kerang, Lake Boga, Robinvale, Wycheproof, Sea Lake, Cohuna, Echuca, Mildura and further afield on video. Phone sessions are available if video is a poor fit for your sensory or connectivity reality.
What the sessions are actually like
A plan gets you through the door, but it does not dictate how therapy looks. You get to determine this!
People use these sessions for anxiety that will not switch off, depression, trauma and PTSD (including EMDR), grief, burnout, late-identified ADHD or autism, and the particular exhaustion of having been “too much” or “not enough” in previous services.
We work in a trauma-informed, neuro-affirming way. That means pacing, sensory load and communication style are standard not an add on.
More on how counselling runs is on our individual counselling page.
Common sticking points
“My GP said I need a psychiatrist first.”
Not for this pathway, a GP can write the plan.
“I already used sessions this year.”
The cap is per calendar year. If you have used some elsewhere, tell us so we do not claim past the limit.
“Can I use NDIS and Medicare together?”
Not for the same session. One funding source per appointment. We can help you choose which makes sense.
“Do I have to live in Swan Hill?”
No. In-person is Swan Hill and the surrounding Mallee. Telehealth is Australia-wide where Medicare rules allow.
If you are ready
Book a longer appointment with your GP and ask for a Mental Health Treatment Plan.
Have them refer to Mind Over Matters
Send us the plan, then book online or send us an email
If you are unsure whether a plan is the right funding path, contact us and we will sort that before you sit in another waiting room.
Mind Over Matters does not provide crisis or emergency care. If you need immediate support: Lifeline 13 11 14 | Beyond Blue 1300 22 4636 | Emergency 000.