Patient Assistance Travel Scheme

The Patient Assistance Travel Scheme (PATS) is a subsidy program that provides financial help for travel and accommodation expenses if you need to travel a long distance to see an approved medical specialist.

You must be referred by a medical professional to the nearest approved specialist.

The scheme covers all of the following:

• return fares to and from appointments
• accommodation costs of up to $60 each night
• ground transport costs for taxis and buses - up to $50 for the entire approved trip will be paid when you provide receipt/s
• you can claim 20 cents per kilometre if you drive more than 200km to an appointment.

Who can apply

To be eligible for the scheme you must:

• be an Australian citizen or permanent resident currently living in the Northern Territory (NT)
• qualify for Medicare
• have a current referral to the nearest approved specialist medical service
• live more than 200km away from the nearest approved specialist
• have to travel more than 400km in one week for renal or oncology treatment.

You are not eligible for PATS if:

• you are on holidays or business and normally live outside of the NT
• you are undertaking a journey to or from Australia
• your permanent residence is not in the NT - this includes fly-in-fly-out contractors
• you can claim compensation or cover from somewhere else, such as Worksafe, Department of Corrections, Department of Veterans' Affairs or motor vehicle compensation
• you do not have a Medicare card.

To find out more about the PATS scheme go to the next page.