A co-operative is an organisation which is owned and controlled by its members for a common benefit. Co-operatives can be profit making or not profit making. Interchange Health Co-op is not profit making. This means any surplus generated from the provision of care is ploughed back into the Co-op for the benefit of members.
Co-ops have to conform to national legislation and must be registered in the State in which they are located. They are bound by Rules, must have a Board, hold an annual general meeting open to all members, and report to the Co-op registration authority each year on a range of matters, including the Co-op’s finances.
Membership
There are no restrictions on membership except that members must have a Medicare Card. In the case of families, each parent must have separate membership but minors under 18 are covered by either parent’s membership.
Benefits and obligations
Benefits
There are two major benefits
You will be bulkbilled for most consultations
The Co-op offers top quality health care - the same kind of health care practiced by our predecessor, Interchange General Practice, and which made it a by-word in Canberra for the very best kind of general practice. Read More
Also
Members are owners of the Co-op and can help decide its future Read More
Any profits are ploughed back into the Co-op Read More
The Co-op is supported by the ACT Government Read More
Obligations
There is an annual membership fee of $120. If you have a health care card, it is only $60
(for eligible cards see here)
Members are obliged under Co-op rules to pay membership fees on time.
Members who engage in disruptive, abusive, intimidatory, violent or stalking behaviour put their membership at risk.