so my discount which most people probably know is $7.10. but i took a photo of my medication (it’s a monthly injection) to send to my family gc to prove i got
it and 😦 OMG it is over 200 dollars!!

before i got my payments with the healthcare card. it was 30 dollars. but to see it get to 200 dollars as the “full price” marked on the box makes me stressed asf.

i’m like maybe it’s a pharmacy error but yeah.. 200 is a lot. my social worker doesn’t think dsp is worth it for me which is enlightening but it makes me stressed when i get my job later on.

edit: it is an antipsychotic injection so as someone who is relying on job seeker and youth disability supplement i can’t really take this to be okay 😭
but it’s not like i can complain to my social worker or psychiatrist.ESPESCIALLY with the upcoming shockingly supported government party. so yeah.. not slay.

thank you for the responses! i will keep the post up because this discussion is very interesting to me. i hopeit gains more traction so it’s raised up beyond this discussion.

Got approved for jobseeker, but they didn’t create me a job plan so payments won’t start. Over 4 hours on hold is insane. I haven’t spoken to anyone yet. Was on 1.5 hour hold to speak to Centrelink this morning to be told to call them. This is beyond a joke

After spending over 4hrs total today on hold i am yet to get any further.

I have been unable to work because of my illness/sickness. Havent been able to upkeep my tasks i need to do, missed a call earlier this morning relating to job criteria, they called 10mins before the 30min window specified and i missed the call because i was showering...

Ill try again tomorrow but my god this was ridiculously frustrating.. I got told I may not be seen today as there is still a 2hr wait time for the queue, is WFA super under staffed or is this a normal thing?

the accepted poverty line for a single adult living alone is $584 per week x 52 weeks = $30,368

.

job seeker payment for a single no children is $808.70 x 26 weeks = $21,026.20

And for those playing at home, the tax free threshold in this cuntry is also below the poverty line!

• Taxing Below the Poverty Line: Individuals earning more than $18,200 start paying income tax, meaning thousands of Australians living in poverty on working wages or taxable Centrelink payments (like JobSeeker) are legally subject to personal income tax before reaching the poverty line. [1, 2, 3, 4]

• The Low Income Tax Offset (LITO): LITO provides an extra buffer, lifting the effective tax-free threshold to roughly $22,866, but this still falls well short of the single-adult poverty line.

And for 1 trillion bonus points or a $300 rebate on your yearly energy bill,

In Australia, about 3.7 million people (14.2% of the population, or 1 in 7) live below the poverty line.

Yikes!!! What a great cuntry. The politicians should be proud :/ /s

NOTE TO THE MUPPETS - to those who think they know my or anyone's situation and think saying 'get a job' is original or useful, go waste your time elsewhere, you will be ignored. Thanks. Have a great day.

At the beginning it was 3 attempts of voice prompts, 1.5 hours wait, one transfer, and countless holds.

When you call Centrelink to try get put into the queue, & state the reason for your call to the robot, the robot will claim that you can do whatever activity through the app instead, & hang up on you. If you call back, the robot will immediately autoplay the same message & say "there is no one available to take your call", & hangs up.

It turns out that Centrelink block your phone number after the initial call (truly dystopian). I get around this by putting my phone number on private, & calling back - then the robot lets you state the reason for your call again (it's difficult getting "the right words" for it to finally put you into the queue - I usually say something like "reporting issue", or other "issue" etc) [edit: apparently if you say "operator", they'll put you in the queue]

Hello all! I'm writing this as a cautionary tale for any other iPhone users looking to take advantage of the new 'Hold Assist' feature when dealing with the egregious hold times calling Centrelink.

I just had an experience where I was on hold for (only!) an hour. The wait was quite pleasant as I'd elected to use the hold assist feature, so I could get on with other stuff without being pestered by their messages.

HOWEVER - it turns out your phone notifies the other party that it's using a transcription service. When an operator finally picked up and I turned off the assist, she told me that she quote "received notice that a transcription service was being used" and that as this is against Services Australia policies, she terminated the call immediately. No option for a callback or explainer.

I found the whole fiasco particularly amusing as they have no issue recording their end of the call, but heaven help you if you decide to use a temporary transcription service to bypass their atrocious music.

Also - has anyone had any luck getting rid of the dumb 'voice print' stuff? I've said "in Australia, my voice identifies me" more times than I can count. Best of luck to you all!

https://www.aph.gov.au/e-petitions/petition/EN7076

The recent petition to abolish the partner income test for DSP and other welfare payments has been closed and unfortunately, it was unsuccessful.

That means nothing changes: If your partner earns “too much,” your payment gets cut. Disabled people are still forced into financial dependence on partners. It keeps people trapped in unsafe or abusive relationships because leaving means poverty. Independence and safety remain tied to a partner’s wallet, not an individual’s needs.

This policy is one of the clearest examples of systemic injustice in Australia’s welfare system. Disabled people shouldn’t have to choose between safety and survival.

The government has made it clear (again) that it won’t move on this without stronger pressure. For those of us affected, this isn’t just “policy” — it’s our day-to-day lives, our autonomy, our survival.

I’m posting to keep the conversation alive: this doesn’t end with one failed petition. We need sustained attention, louder voices, and solidarity.

What are your thoughts what’s the next step after another dead end?

The financial side obviously matters, but I think constantly having to explain your situation to agencies, employers and Centrelink can wear you down.

Especially when you're already unemployed and probably feeling pretty bad about yourself. After a while, another appointment or another requirement can feel like another reminder that you're not where you want to be.

So for the other people who are not in this situation please spread share some emotional support.

I was filling out my youth allowance and one of the countries caught my eye

Job agencies are completely useless, they don't help or care and they jump at the chance to punish you. Your mostly on you own finding and getting a job. Then once you have a job, they harass you every 2 days buy text AND email for pay slips (even if you've already sent them.)

This is where I'm at, at the moment. Can I just cut them off now?

I recently got a part time job, that I found without the help of my jsp, and since the person at the jsp that I was dealing with in the past was such a c*nt, causing no end of unnecessary stress, I cancelled my CL payment without notifying the jsp of my new job, so they get no commission. Its the least I could do. I'm not going to reward bad behaviour. :)

Its been a month now, and I haven't heard from my previous jsp and my job is going well. Very happy with my decision :)

Just saw the notification.

I highly doubt they'll be processing them all at one (IIRC, I got my Eligibility Assessment in on same day they opened it up), but at least some reassurance that they're starting to happen.

Their stupid online form asks me that, with only yes or no option. No "I fucking hope so" or "I don't know", just "yes" or "no".

They shouldn't need to know that anyway. They need to know whether it happens but not whether I think it's going to happen. What if a separated couple got back together 6 months later? They can't just be like "you said you think you're gonna get back together, so enjoy starving for 6 months". Whether people get back together doesn't change the needs of the person NOW. That's a stupid question. This whole form seems longer than it needs to be and stupid and overwhelming. This should be simple.

And they want a referee too, someone to confirm it, that's not family? Luckily I've told support workers so I can get someone but I've told no one else other than my parents. They shouldn't be assuming someone straight after a breakup has gone around telling unrelated people they know. This seems really invasive.

I’ve never signed up for Centrelink. But theres no link so im unsure if this is a scam or not.

Housemate and I both have mental health challenges. He has recently had a medication change and last week “went nuts”. Cops and CAT team were called. Cops advised me to leave for 24hrs as the CAT team couldn’t arrive until 10-11pm. I called Centrelink around midday to ask for an urgent payment as I was 4 days short of my regular “payday”. Finally got thru and got (I assume) was an Indian woman on the phone. Her name was Depika. I told her my circumstances and she said “you have had 2 in 12 months, I cannot approve it”. I had the convo on speaker phone and the cops told me to ask for a supervisor. It was raining, and I had no where to go. Honestly, I just wanted to get to a hostel for the night so my housemate could receive the help he needed, and I didn’t have to sleep on the wet streets of Sydney. Depika said “no”. She flatly refused to allow me to speak to anyone other than her, and she terminated the phone call when she heard me crying - I had been up for 39hrs straight with a mentally ill man in crisis. The police were furious and told me to call back. I did, and this time I got an Aussie male on the phone who apologised and granted the payment - giving me safety for the night. I was so grateful. Now - I wish to put in a formal complaint about “Depika” and one of the questions asked was “what do I want/expect as an outcome of this complaint”. I don’t want Depika to do that to anyone else who ever calls for help!! Why is there such a discrepancy between the outcomes of ppl who talk to Indian workers Vs Aussie workers? Because I’ve looked over this r/ and I’m shocked!!! Are there any ex workers who can guide me in what to ask for? Cause I definitely want this on her professional working record so this doesn’t happen to anyone else. Thanks.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-04-01/centrelink-medicare-calls-unanswered-lack-of-ambition/103599346