Policy and Advocacy Veterans Update 8 December

Government response on Royal Commission  

On Monday, 2 December, the Commonwealth Government released its response to the Final Report of the Royal Commission Inquiry into Defence and Veteran Suicide. Disappointingly, the Government failed to take any immediate action to improve the health system that supports veterans. OTA will continue to advocate for improvements to DVA fee rates and the veterans’ health system via our Federal Election Campaign. Read OTA’s full statement on the Government response here. 

OTA has written to several key MPs and Senators highlighting our concerns for the Scheme's sustainability, and the impact that continued underinvestment in the allied health sector will have on the wellbeing of veterans who rely on these core services including occupational therapy. In our correspondence we emphasised the need for renewed investment in veteran health services and called on key decision makers to commit to supporting the veteran health system in the lead up to the federal election.  

Billing for longer /complex DVA client appointments  

OTA recently advocated to DVA for an alternative way for OTs to be compensated fairly when dealing with longer complex client appointments, and to highlight limitations in the current fee schedule.   

DVA’s Health and Wellbeing Policy Branch have advised the following new pathway to seek additional reimbursement for longer appointments:  

“DVA acknowledges that situations may arise where an OT is presented with an assessment that is more complex than expected. Unfortunately, the Department is unable to provide a telephone approval for a higher fee.  However, there is an alternative, which is for the OT to submit a request for Prior Financial Authorisation (DVA Form D1328) and seek retrospective approval for a higher fee. These requests would be assessed by our OT Adviser and where clinical circumstances warrant the payment of additional fees, a retrospective approval would be granted.  The D1328 form should be sent to the health.approval@dva.gov.au email address. The usual process of seeking Prior Financial Approval before providing a service remains for circumstances where it is assessed prior to the appointment that DVA fees will not meet the clinical needs of a veteran. In this situation, providers can request a higher fee through DVA Prior Financial Approval arrangements before they provide the service.  These requests require clinical justification and are considered on a case-by-case basis.”  

We request that members who follow this pathway provide us with feedback on responses from DVA – to enable us to identify if any additional issues are encountered. Please contact policy@otaus.com.au with any further information.   

Free mental health training for veteran health providers  

Mental Health First Aid is offering free Mental Health First aid training for veterans, their family members, and health care professionals and community members who support veterans.  

Clinicians can enrol in a course to gain the knowledge, skills, and confidence to recognise and respond to signs of mental health problems, suicidal thoughts or other crises. Learn more here.