My first "official" encounter with the Australian health system

as a patient, as an international student.

to describe it in one sentence. "it burns a whole in my pocket (well my dad's pocket technically)".
i woke this morning feeling really lousy. had been coughing throughout the night, and my throat was really sore - couldn't sleep very well at all. went to see the gp who prescribed me the above. ahh, AUD 57 poorer :( and my card got rejected, somehow my money transfer didn't go through this morning. thank God for credit cards :)

you see, the system here is, you see the gp. your insurance covers 75% of the consult, so we usually end up having to pay a "gap" which ranges from AUD10-30 (depending on the nature, and length of your consult). after that, the dr usually writes you a script, which you have to go to your local chemist to get your medications. and for overseas students, our insurance only covers medications costing AUD31 and above for EACH medication. hence, the hole in the pocket :)

i guess for the sake of getting better, it's worth paying? hope i get over this soon. being sick is no fun at all...

pray along with me :)