A health check involves speaking to your doctor about your medical history and lifestyle – for example your ​diet, physical activity, alcohol intake and smoking history. These are generally covered by Medicare. Associated screenings can happen anytime you visit your GP, or be part of national screening programs targetting conditions such as cervical, bowel or breast cancer.
A full medical checkup, or full body checkup, is a comprehensive clinical assessment or examination done by a doctor, usually in a private clinic. It can include a medical examination, pathology tests, medical imaging and more. It's intended to detect illnesses early or to prevent them from developing – though in many cases, this isn't possible to do. These tests can cost thousands of dollars and aren't usually covered by Medicare or private health insurance.
The companies that sell full body checkups in Australia are fairly cagey about how much they actually charge, not quoting any prices on their sites. To save you the hassle, I emailed and got the cost breakdown. RIP my inbox.
These are the quoted prices I got from HealthScreen, one of Australia's leading full body scan providers:
It's worth noting that most full body scans, especially if they use an MRI, will lead to more tests. More tests will usually mean more money - so the initial cost of the test is often just a starting point.
Full body checkups are controversial in the medical profession. Arguments raised by experts include:
Conversely, with less emphasis on preventative medicine in Medicare, there may be a space for people to be more active in managing their health.
If you're thinking of a full body checkup, you should do some reading first. At the very least, read this article from Wiser Healthcare that warns about the checkups. You should also read the response to that article fromDr David Badov, medical director at HealthScreen, a provider in this space.
"A recent update of a Cochrane...found high-certainty evidence that general health checks have little or no effect on either overall mortality or death from cancer, and moderate-certainty evidence that they probably have little or no effect on fatal or non-fatal heart attacks or strokes. General health checks offered by various organisations are therefore not evidence-based; they have not been shown to increase life expectancy.
As well as being unlikely to be beneficial, full body general health checks in asymptomatic people can potentially be harmful. The main harms are overdiagnosis, detrimental psychological effects, negative effects on health behaviours (for example, failure to quit smoking due to reassurance of good health), complications related to follow-up tests, and unnecessary treatments."
Everyone agrees that preventative healthcare is important. Thankfully, you can access a bunch of free health checks in Australia through Medicare. They can all help identify risk factors early and even catch an illness in its early stages. Here are 10 free or cheap health check options and who they're suited for.
Cervical cancer is one of the most preventable forms of cancer in women since the number one risk factor, the presence of the HPV virus, can be identified years before it leads to cancer. To find out if you're at risk, you need a cervical screening test (CST), which has replaced the old Pap smear test.
Women aged between 25 and 74 who have never had a CST or Pap test should get the CST at their first opportunity and every 5 years after that. If you've already had the Pap test, you can wait 2 years before having your first CST.
While this is all covered by Medicare, you won't be able to choose your own doctor to perform the test. That's why some women choose to use private health insurance. The right extras cover will pay for your CST and let you choose your doctor.
The National Bowel Cancer Screening Program is open to Australians aged 50 to 74 years of age. They are sent a free test that's done at home. All eligible Medicare card holders get their test in the mail every 2 years.
If your test detects blood, or if you actually see blood in your stool at any time, this could be an early indicator of bowel cancer and you should see your GP immediately (but don't fret too much, as it could also be something relatively harmless like a haemorrhoid). Your GOP will refer you for a colonoscopy, which Medicare will cover.
Australia has the highest rates of skin cancer in the world, but there is no formal screening program for the disease. The best thing you can do is to get familiar with your skin and keep an eye out for changes in the skin, including the following:
If you notice anything, go to your GP who can take a sample of your skin tissue for further examination. Medicare will cover your GP visit and the biopsy.
Mole mapping is another option. It aims to detect skin cancer early by scanning your body for moles using high-tech magnification and photographic equipment and then tracking changes in the moles over time. Medicare does not currently cover this and not all private health insurers will cover it. If you are interested in a policy that covers mole mapping, you'll need to ask the insurer directly.
Breast cancer is the second-largest cause of cancer death in Australian women after lung cancer. If you're a woman who's over 40, you can get a free mammogram (the test that identifies breast cancer) once every 2 years through the government's BreastScreen Australia initiative. Once you hit 50, they will even send you reminders to ensure you're up-to-date.
1 in 7 Australian men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer by the time they turn 85 and almost 3,300 die every year from the disease. The most common way to screen for prostate cancer is by taking the prostate specific antigen (PSA) blood test, but that will only tell you that you're susceptible to the disease and it can return false positives that lead to unnecessary and even harmful follow-up treatments.
For that and other reasons, the PSA is not automatically given to older males. Instead, you should only have the test after you've consulted with your doctor who can first do a rectal exam and look at other risk factors like genetics.
If you move forward with the exam, Medicare will cover you for one PSA test per year if you don't have a history of cancer, or multiple PSA tests per year if you do. Either way, you'll need a referral from your doctor.
Pensioners have access to a wide range of government-subsidised services from hearing tests to hearing aids to follow-up support through the Department of Health's Hearing Services Program. A few other groups can also access these services, including members of the Australian Defence Force and people receiving the Centrelink Sickness Allowance.
If you're not eligible, private health insurance could be the way to go. Many extras policies offer hearing aid cover and may even provide member-exclusive discounts for hearing aids and hearing tests. There are also lots of free hearing tests available in Australia which can help you determie if you need to see a specialist or not.
Every GP will have a blood pressure monitor in their office, and you can find a free, self-service blood pressure monitor in many pharmacies around the country. It's one of the easiest tests you can get, the results are available immediately and it's free.
If your doctor thinks your blood pressure reading is cause for concern, they may advise you to take your blood pressure at home. Medicare won't pay for a home device except in rare cases, so to get this covered, you would need a private extras policy.
High cholesterol, especially the "bad" kind, is one of the many factors doctors look at when assessing your risk of heart disease. They test this through a blood test called a lipid profile that looks at the levels of HDL cholesterol (commonly called good cholesterol), LDL cholesterol (commonly called bad cholesterol) and triglycerides (also bad).
If you have too much of the bad stuff, the doctor will help suggest lifestyle changes that can help you get those numbers lower. If you have other risk factors like high blood pressure, family history of heart disease or a smoking habit, the doctor may also suggest medication.
Everyone with Medicare Part B can get a free cholesterol screening every five years. Private health insurance usually won't cover a blood test like this unless it's performed while you are admitted to a hospital as an inpatient.
Many diseases are hereditary in nature, and that makes it possible to test your genes to see if you are at risk for one of these conditions. Examples of a hereditary disease include Alzheimer's, thyroid cancer, breast cancer and leukaemia.
Just because you have a genetic trait that suggests you are vulnerable to a disease doesn't mean you will necessarily get the disease. You'll need to have your test done in close consultation with your doctors who will also look at other risk factors.
Medicare will cover genetic testing if other tests point to you possibly having a genetic condition or if you are a first-degree relative of someone else with the condition. Private health will usually not cover genetic testing unless it's needed as part of your inpatient hospital treatment.
Anyone with a Medicare card is entitled to an eye exam every 3 years. If you're over 65 or are showing signs of an eye condition, you can get the benefit more often.
But that's where Medicare stops because it doesn't cover eyeglasses or contacts. Each state has a scheme that may cover these devices for you, but usually only if you're a senior. If you need eyeglasses and you're not eligible for a state scheme, private health insurance is the way to go – an extras policy can cover you for frames, prescription lenses and contact lenses.
What is the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) and what medical services does it cover? Find out in this comprehensive guide.
This guide looks at what our public health system actually covers and why you may need to have some level of private health cover as well.
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