Medical and Pharmaceutical

Australian nationals and New Zealand visitors are covered by Medicare, the national health insurance scheme. It does not apply to visitors from any other country.

Visitors should always take out travel insurance cover prior to departure from their home country. The best prices for Australian travel insurance is for cover arranged direct with the insurer which can be 50% of the price charged by your travel agent.

Our Australian travel insurance discussion page is a recommended resource when considering the appropriate level of insurance cover for your travels.

Visitors will only require specific vaccinations if they have travelled through an area infected with yellow fever. Visitors passing through other countries when entering or leaving Australia should check the vaccination requirements of those countries.

All cities and most towns offer 24 hour medical facilities by way of private practice clinics or government run hospital facilities. They will be listed in the telephone book of the area you are visiting.

Chemists are located in all towns and cities throughout Australia. The Australian chemist does not operate the "soda fountain" type of drug store found in the USA.