If a person or their family member is provided with a Gold or White Repatriation Health Card for their treatment, then they are eligible to receive MRCA Supplement at the low rate in lieu of the former pharmaceutical allowance.
Persons with a Repatriation Health Card have to make a co-contribution when purchasing pharmaceuticals. The Safety Net Scheme ensures that a person does not pay for more than 60 prescription items (currently) at the concessional rate in a calendar year. After this prescriptions are free. The MRCA Supplement is designed to compensate a person for the co-contribution they make for each prescription item.
If a person travels overseas they will not be eligible for the MRCA Supplement if they are absent for more than 26 weeks. If a person leaves Australia permanently, they will not be eligible for the MRCA Supplement after the day on which they left Australia.