Heart Health Check

A Heart Health Check is a crucial step in assessing your risk of heart attack or stroke. It’s a 20-minute appointment with your GP that can provide valuable insights into your cardiovascular health.

The number one cause of death in Australia is ischemic heart disease. This occurs when the heart is damaged because of the narrowing of the arteries that supply the heart.

Someone in Australia has a heart attack or stroke every 4 minutes1 yet most of these events could be prevented with healthy choices that help to minimise the risk factors.

A Heart Health Check can help you understand more about your personal risk of having a heart attack or stroke.

In 2019, Medicare introduced items that allowed eligible patients to receive a Medicare rebate when GPs or other medical practitioners conduct a thorough assessment of their heart health. This gathered information is entered in the Australian CVD risk calculator to calculate and record the absolute CVD risk.

What is a Heart Health Check?

A Heart Health Check is a 20-minute appointment with your GP that is designed to detect factors that may be putting the health of your heart at risk.

After your assessment, your GP creates a comprehensive preventative health care plan to help improve your cardiovascular health.

What Happens During a Heart Health Check?

Discussion: Your GP will ask about various factors, including smoking habits, diabetes, medications you’re taking, existing health conditions, family history of heart disease, ethnicity (as some groups are at higher risk).
Examination and assessment including blood pressure, cholesterol Levels, blood sugar levels.
Risk assessment: using a validated calculator, your GP will estimate your risk of heart attack or stroke over the next 5 years.

Your GP will combine and use all of this information to assess your risk of having a heart attack or stroke in the next 5 years. If required, they’ll also work with you to put a plan in place that focuses on improving any of your heart-disease risk factors.

Who Should Get a Heart Health Check?

Age: If you’re aged 45 or above, you’re eligible. Younger individuals with specific risk factors should also consider it. Heart Health Checks are recommended at least once every 2 years for both men and women aged 45 years and over, or 30 years and over for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Depending on your risk, your doctor may recommend that you have a Heart Health Check every year.

Medicare Coverage: Heart Health Checks are now covered by Medicare, making them free at bulk-billing practices.

Can I get a free Heart Health Check?

Heart Health Checks in Australia are covered by Medicare, so if you visit a GP clinic that bulk bills this service, yes, you can get a Heart Health Check for free.

Key points:

Cardiovascular disease is the number one cause of death in Australia.
There are many factors that influence your risk of cardiovascular disease and some of them can be managed with lifestyle changes and/or medication.
You can arrange a heart health check with your doctor to assess your risk of having a heart attack or stroke in the next 5 years and to create a plan to help manage that risk.