Claiming Essential Medical Equipment Payment (EMEP) 008-01040010

An EMEP claim for essential medical equipment and/or medically required heating/cooling applies to the customer’s current residential address, and can be made by:

• a customer with essential medical needs (equipment user). If the equipment user is a:
• a dependent child
• a non-dependent adult, they must authorise the carer to claim their EMEP, or
• a person caring for an equipment user. The carer:
• must provide care and attention on a regular and ongoing basis for the equipment user
• does not need to be a formal carer or be receiving Carer Payment and/or Carer Allowance to qualify
• must live together with the equipment user at the same address
• does not need to satisfy any formal minimum standards of care requirements to qualify

If the customer lives in different residences during the year, separate claims are needed for each residence. EMEP can be paid for the same item(s) of equipment at up to 2 residences every 12 months. For example:

• a dependent child who is in shared care and living alternately with either parent, or
• a non-dependent elderly customer living alternately between 2 residences that belong to their adult children

See Essential Medical Equipment Payment (EMEP) for further eligibility requirements.

Tell the customer they can claim online. The Services Australia website has relevant information and a list of medical equipment that qualifies for EMEP.

Note: correspondence nominees cannot claim EMEP online on behalf of a customer and must lodge a paper claim. Go to Step 3.

Does the customer want to claim online?

• Yes, see Table 2 > Step 1
• No, go to Step 3

Check if the customer has already lodged a paper claim form or supporting documents, if the customer has provided a paper claim, go to Step 5

Otherwise, check if the customer has a record by completing a thorough search for the customer's reference number (CRN). If the customer does not have a CRN, create a record. Use the Mail forms workflow in Customer First to issue the customer with the relevant claim forms:

• Claim for Essential Medical Equipment Payment (SA440):
• customers must use this form if they use 1 or more items of essential medical equipment
• the SA440 is a combined form with the Medical Practitioners - Essential Medical Equipment Payment - Medical confirmation (SA449) and is available on the Services Australia website
• Medical Practitioners - Essential Medical Equipment Payment - Medical confirmation (SA449):
• medical practitioners must use this form to confirm and certify the customer’s need for essential medical equipment and/or medically required heating or cooling in their home
• the SA449 form is available on the Services Australia website
• Essential Medical Equipment Payment – Equipment User Declaration (SA450):
• this consent form must be signed by the person who uses the essential medical equipment
• the form authorises EMEP to be paid to the person’s carer
• the SA450 form is available on the Services Australia website
• Claim for Essential Medical Equipment Payment - Multiple Claim (SA451):
• customers must use this form to claim for multiple items of essential medical equipment and/or multiple equipment users who live at the same residence
• each equipment user listed on the SA451 is considered an individual claim and each claim is assessed and processed separately
• the SA451 is a combined form (and includes the SA449) and is available on the Services Australia website

Anyone can lodge documents for the customer, except for identity linkage documents.

Identity Confirmation is required for the customer (and equipment user) if they have not previously confirmed their identity. Acceptable identity documents can be lodged:

• in person at a service centre or agent site (remote areas only)
• via a nominee
• online via Upload documents
• by phone when coded and verified in the Identity Confirmation Dashboard in Process Direct, or
• by post (documents are returned to customers by registered post)

Medical evidence provided for the initial EMEP claim must not be more than 2 years old. If it is over 2 years old, new medical evidence is required.

Medical evidence from a Treating Health Professional (THP) must include a signed Medical Practitioners - Essential Medical Equipment Payment - Medical confirmation (SA449). This medical confirmation declaration form is:

• provided as a link to customers who submit an online EMEP claim
• combined with the SA440 and SA451 for paper claims
• available for download on the Services Australia website

The SA449 must be used for new claims to verify that the equipment user:

• requires specified essential medical equipment, or
• has a medical condition that means they cannot regulate their body temperature and medically requires heating/cooling in their home

Once granted:

• EMEP remains current
• current EMEP customers will:
• be automatically paid every 12 months on the grant date anniversary, and
• continue to get payments until they lose qualification

When there is a change in circumstances (such as a change in residential address):

• the customer loses qualification
• the customer must lodge a new claim
• a new anniversary date is set according to the date of grant of the new claim

Proof of medical needs is not required again if:

• the customer changes address but the claim is for the same person with the same medical equipment/requirements
• a new carer claims, with no other changes to medical requirements

Medical documents provided for other payments cannot be used for EMEP, for example:

• Medical Report - Disability Support Pension Review (SA012RM), or
• Carer Payment and/or Carer Allowance Medical Report - For a person - 16 years or over (SA332A)

If further evidence or information is required, this will need to be requested.

The following evidence may be provided (instead of an SA449) to verify that essential medical equipment is required, this is not an exhaustive list:

• an energy bill showing a rebate or concession under a state or territory scheme
• notification from the Department of Veterans' Affairs

No other evidence can be provided for medically required heating/cooling.

When claiming online, the customer should print and keep the SA450 as they may be asked for it during a review. The SA450 is a declaration signed by the equipment user that authorises EMEP to be paid to their carer.

Customers do not need to provide energy account evidence for an EMEP claim unless they did not provide proof for an EMEP energy account review.

Check the customer has completed and signed the claim form. The equipment user also needs to sign the claim if they are not the customer or a dependent child:

Scan the SA440, SA451, SA450 and/or SA449 forms to the customer's record.

Do not accept the SA449 as a claim, it must be accompanied by a completed SA440 or SA451. See Processing EMEP claims.

In Process Direct:

• Go to Identity Confirmation Dashboard to check the customer’s Identity Status, see Identity Confirmation
• If provided and/or required code identity documents
• Procedure ends here

Check if the customer is registered with an active Centrelink online account.

If they do not have an active account, they must confirm their identity at their local service centre to register for a Centrelink online account.

Customers can create a myGov account and link it to their Centrelink services. This will also enable them to receive Centrelink mail online through the myGov inbox.

Customers can use the Payment and Service Finder in their Centrelink online account or on the Services Australia website to check which payment is appropriate for them.

Note: Assisted Customer Claim (ACC) cannot be used for EMEP.

Once registered with an 'active' online account:

• Customers sign in to myGov and access their Centrelink online account
• From the menu, select My Details > Personal and contact details > My profile to check their pre-populated personal details are correct. If changes are required (such as relationship status), select:
• Update to make changes to a section
  Note: accommodation details are covered within the claim questions
• Save for each section update

Customers can start a new claim, from the menu options:

• Go to Payments and Claims > Claims > Make a Claim > Disabled, ill or injured> select Get started
• Select Apply for Essential Medical Equipment Payment
• Select Continue
• Answer the Check your eligibility questions
• Select Continue
• Answer the You may be eligible questions
• Select Continue

On the Make a claim page customers must answer all compulsory questions before they can submit the claim.

• Select Continue to move through the Claim Progress pages: Customer Details:
• must provide Customer Reference Number if known, name(s), date of birth, gender of the equipment user or carer claiming and if they are a dependent child or not
• Address Details:
• must provide their permanent home address and confirm if this is where the medical equipment is used. If not, they must state the type of residence where the equipment is being used (for example, temporary) and the address
• Contact Requirements:
• Interpreter
• Preferred language for written communication
• Nominees
• Preferred service centre
• Telecommunication Details:
• must provide at least 1 number for contact during business hours
• Essential Medical Equipment Payment. If the customer is claiming EMEP as the medical equipment user, they must advise:
• if they use medically required heating/cooling
• each item of essential medical equipment they use
• the energy account is held by them or their partner, or they can show they have to pay toward the account
• the type of energy used to run the medical equipment
• Essential Medical Equipment Payment. If the customer is claiming EMEP as the carer of the medical equipment user, they must advise:
• the care receiver's personal details
• the carer receiver's address details
• if the care receiver uses medically required heating/cooling
• each item of essential medical equipment the care receiver uses
• the energy account is held by the carer or their partner, or they can show they or the carer receiver has to pay toward the account
• the type of energy used to run the medical equipment
• Payment Destination. Customers can choose to:
• use the same account they use for their current payments
• nominate an account by stating the Branch (BSB) number, account number, and name the account is in. it must be in their name or jointly in their name
• provide their account details later

The Review your claim page contains a summary of all information provided by the customer so they can check what they have entered is correct.

The customer can go back by selecting the Back button or change their details by selecting the link to the question set.

If the information is correct, the customer can select Continue.

The Declaration page will display.

The customer must accept the claim declaration before they can submit the claim.

If the person with medical needs is not the customer and is over 16 years, they need to give consent. The customer must tick the box the equipment is aware the customer is claiming EMEP, and they have their written consent.

Once the customer accepts the declaration, select Submit claim.

The What you must do page confirms that the claim has been submitted, and displays their claim number.

The customer must provide verification documents and forms for their claim, including medical and identity confirmation information. This can include proof of medical needs, such as Medical Practitioners - Essential Medical Equipment Payment - Medical confirmation (SA449) to confirm and certify the customer’s need for essential medical equipment and/or medically required heating or cooling in their home.

Note: medical information lodged with the initial claim must not be more than 2 years old

The customer does not need to provide evidence that they meet energy account requirements. This may need to be provided later.

Customers can upload documents online.

Options on this page include:

• View your Online Claim
• Providing your identity
• Print this page
• Return to the online account menu, and
• View a summary of all Your online claims

After a customer has submitted an online claim, the customer cannot update any further claim details, except to withdraw their claim online.

Note: as EMEP is a legacy online claim, the Withdraw claim option is only available if the submit date was within the past 14 days. If the submit date is more than 14 days, the customer cannot be contacted and asked to withdraw their claim.

Customers must contact Services Australia to add and/or update the claim .

When a customer submits their online claim, the system automatically:

• indexes a new claim activity or creates a manual follow-up activity on their record
• creates a DOC
• uploads customer contact details

View information the customer has provided in their online claim in the Review Claim section.

Messages and notifications

Customers who provide a mobile phone number or email address will be:

• advised they will automatically be subscribed to the Electronic Messaging (EM) service unless they have previously declined
• asked if they want to nominate a preferred contact method (SMS or email) for notifications
• subscribed to receive their Centrelink mail online. These will be delivered through their myGov Inbox, and
• advised they can opt out of these services at any time

When a customer lodges another EMEP claim for the same essential medical equipment less than 12 months from the most recent payment of EMEP and has not had a change of circumstances, see Processing Essential Medical Equipment Payment (EMEP) claims.