Family Tax Benefit Part A in Medicare Safety Net 011-43080030

A Service Officer can access the Consumer Directory Maintenance System (CDMS) to check if a person has a recorded FTB A status.

A customer's FTB A entitlement is stored within Services Australia's Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) patient database. Service Officer's use the PBS Patient Enquiries menu to perform an enquiry on this information in the PBS patient database. The Service Officer can view the FTB A entitlements for a specified customer reference number (CRN) or Medicare card number.

The FTB (A) Entitlement Enquiry (RFTB) screen is an enquiry only screen and the details cannot be adjusted.

The Process page contains information on how to access and search the RFTB screen.

The details displayed on the FTB Entitlement Enquiry (RFTB) screen can be used to confirm FTB A entitlement.

If the NOTIFY PBS field is populated with a Y the customer's record will need to be refreshed by PBS. The Process page contains instructions for accessing the Patient Enquiry system. and CDMS does not reflect the FTB A concessional.

When searching for FTB A entitlements using the F selection criteria, use either the CRN number or the Medicare card number. For the most comprehensive search of the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) FTB A entitlement dataset use the CRN number.

Searches for FTB A details cannot be performed using patient name or address details.

If any other details are entered, an error message will display.

The Resources page contains information about PBS preference help messages and PBS preference error messages.

In the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) system, the preference help key differs from the Medicare preference help key:

• [F1] - Medicare preference help
• [F4] - PBS preference help

The Resources page contains further information.

Families eligible for FTB A are eligible for the Extended Medicare Safety Net (EMSN) FTB A threshold.

A family's out-of-pocket (OOP) expenses accumulate towards the Extended Medicare Safety Net (EMSN) FTB A threshold. Once the threshold is met, the family is entitled to higher Medicare Safety Net benefits. The EMSN benefit is 80% of the OOP expenses or the EMSN benefit cap, whichever is the lesser amount.

Service Officers can view a family's OOP expenses by selecting Medicare Safety Net from the drop down list in CDMS, then entering one of the identifiers:

• Medicare card number
• Consumer ID, or
• Medicare PIN

Note: OOP expenses are the difference between the charge and the benefit paid for out-of-hospital services.

See also: Extended Medicare Safety Net (EMSN).

Only families who are eligible for FTB A are eligible for the Extended Medicare Safety Net (EMSN) FTB A threshold.

Note: individuals receiving FTB A who are not registered as a family, are not eligible for the EMSN FTB A threshold.

Service Officers can check the family's FTB A status via one of the following:

• The CDMS system selecting Medicare Safety Net from the drop down list
• Accessing the FTB (A) Entitlement Enquiry (RFTB). The Process page contains instructions for accessing the patient enquiry screen
• Through the family assistance system within a service centre (with the customer's permission)

If the Medicare Safety Net system does not reflect the FTB A status stated by the customer:

• complete the Medicare Safety Net escalation form, and
• email to Medicare Consumers Program Support - Medicare Consumers Section - Medicare Branch

Family Extended Medicare Safety Net (EMSN) FTB A threshold eligibility commences when the family has met all of the following criteria:

• registered for a family Medicare Safety Net
• eligible for an FTB A payment
• reached the current EMSN FTB A threshold
• been confirmed as a family for that year

The FTB A payment information is sent from Centrelink to Medicare electronically.

Centrelink will only advise Medicare of the first time a recipient receives or defers an FTB A payment in each calendar year. Notification of further payments will not be forwarded to Medicare where a family is receiving regular payments from Centrelink.

If a family is receiving fortnightly instalments of FTB A and changes their payment choice to zero rate during the calendar year to receive their entitlement at the end of the financial year the customer will continue to receive the FTB A threshold for the remainder of that calendar year. The customer will not be eligible for the FTB A threshold commencing 1 January of the next calendar year.

A family receiving an FTB A payment as a lump sum payment for the current financial year will be eligible for the FTB A threshold commencing the start of the next calendar year. For example, if a customer receives an FTB A payment for the 2015-2016 financial year in August 2016, the family FTB A safety net threshold will commence 1 January 2017.

The Resources page contains further information about payment choices and eligibility for the EMSN FTB A threshold.

Where a FTB A payment is made after the eligible Medicare Safety Net calendar year, eligibility for the Extended Medicare Safety Net (EMSN) FTB A threshold cannot be backdated. Therefore, no Medicare Safety Net benefits are payable for that calendar year even if the family meets the threshold.