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Victorian Bushfire Appeal Fund

Fact sheet

The Victorian Bushre Appeal Fund has announced agit to assist people with the most severe permanent

impairments (either physical or psychological) sustainedas a direct result o the 2009 Victorian bushres and whocontinue to experience nancial hardship.

What assistance is available?

A total o $3.5 million has been committed to thePermanently Impaired git. The value o the grants that

individuals receive will be determined by both theirlevel o impairment and nancial hardship. Successulapplicants will receive a minimum payment o $10,000,however based on the eligibility criteria a small numbero individuals who are most severely impacted may beeligible or larger git amounts (which will be capped at a

maximum o $150,000).

Any git amount above the minimum payment will be

determined on a case-by-case basis and will be availableto individuals or whom the bushres have had the most

devastating eect, leaving them with a substantial andsevere permanent impairment and with the most extremelevel o nancial hardship.

Am I eligible?

To be eligible or this git, as a direct result o the 2009Victorian bushres, you must:

havesustainedphysicalor psychological injuries that

have resulted in a permanent impairment; and

beexperiencingnancialhardship.

The application orm and supporting documentation orthis git will be used to determine whether you meet thecriteria.

What is a permanent impairment?

Physical Injuries

You must meet all o the ollowing criteria to be eligible orthis git in relation to your physical injuries sustained as adirect result o the 2009 Victorian bushres:

YoupreviouslyreceivedtheSevereInjurypaymentor

you were admitted to hospital as an inpatient (inpatientmeans you were admitted to a hospital or clinic or

treatment that requires at least one overnight stay)within 12 months o the res;

Theinjuryrequiresongoingmedicaltreatment(medical

treatment means any treatment or procedures carriedout by a medical practitioner in the course o medicalor surgical practice and includes the prescription or

supply o drugs);

Theinjuryishavingasevereimpactonactivitiesof

daily living; and

Youareexperiencingnancialhardship.

Psychological InjuriesYou must meet all o the ollowing criteria to be eligible orthis git in relation to your psychological injuries sustained

as a direct result o the 2009 Victorian bushres:

Youwereadmittedtohospitalasaninpatient(inpatient

means you were admitted to a hospital or clinic or

treatment that requires at least one overnight stay)within 12 months o the res or required intensivetreatment, requiring both prescribed medication andtherapy with a psychiatrist or psychologist at leastweekly or a minimum o 12 weeks;

Treatmentrequiresregularandongoingprescribed

medication and therapy with a psychiatrist orpsychologist;

Theinjuryishavingasevereimpactonactivitiesof

daily living; and

Youareexperiencingnancialhardship.

Note: For the purposes o this git a permanent impairmentis assessed based on either physical or psychologicalinjuries (it cannot be a combination o both).

What inormation do you need to provide

to determine whether or not you have a

permanent impairment?As part o your application you will need to provide theollowing inormation:

supportingdocumentationregardingyourpermanent

impairment (or example a hospital invoice/report or aletter rom your treating physician); and

acompletedapplicationform,includingsigningthe

statutory declaration.

I you are unsure whether the level o documentation you

currently have in relation to your injuries will be sucientor your application, and you need help obtaining an

up to date summary o medical inormation about the

Permanently Impaired Gift

Authorised by the Victorian Government, 50 Lonsdale Street Melbourne

See page 2 for further information

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treatment provided to you or your injury/s, you may decideto discuss this with your treating physician or a GeneralPractitioner (GP).

Note: It is not necessary or your treating physician or GP toundertake a medical examination. The decision to perorma medical examination is at the discretion o your treatingphysician or GP.

In these cases, your treating physician or GP may assistyou to complete Part A or Part B o the application orm.

Alternatively, they may preer to write a letter containing therelevant inormation. I so, you should attach this letter toyour application.

Note: The Fund has sought advice rom the

Commonwealth Government which has advised thatconsultations with a GP can be claimed or this purposeunder Medicare. However, the benets you receive romMedicare are based on a Schedule o ees set by the

Australian Government. Your GP may choose to charge

more than the Schedule ee.

What is fnancial hardship?

You will be required to complete the nancial hardshipsection o the application orm. Determining your nancialhardship involves consideration o a range o actors,including your nancial resources and your nancial

burdens. Your eligibility or this git will be determinedthrough the answers you have provided in this application.

How will my application be assessed?

When your application is received, your stated injury/sand supporting documentation will be reviewed by aspecialist medical assessor. You or your treating physician

or GP (i you have provided the necessary consent) may

be contacted to clariy inormation submitted with yourapplication or to obtain urther details pertaining to yourinjury/s.

I it cannot be determined whether or not you havesustained a permanent impairment, you may be requiredto undertake an independent expert medical assessment.This expert medical assessment will be at no cost to you.

However, the assessment may delay the processing o yourapplication. The outcome o the expert medical assessmentwill assist in making a nal determination regarding yourpermanent impairment.

What other inormation do I need toprovide?

I you have previously claimed assistance rom the Fund,your identity will have been conrmed in the earlier

application and you will only be required to provide theollowing inormation:

supportingdocumentationregardingtheinjury/syou

sustained;

anysupportingdocumentationregardingthenancialhardship you are currently suering; and

acompletedapplicationform,includingsigningthe

statutory declaration.

In addition, i you have not had a previous claim withthe Fund, you will be required to provide the ollowingevidence:

proofofidentity;and

proofofpermanentaddress.

I you have previously claimed rom the Fund you may

have already provided some o this material. However, or

some people, their circumstances will have changed andit is important or the application to refect your currentsituation.

Who can witness a statutory declaration?

People authorised to witness statutory declarations include

lawyers, police, pharmacists, school principals, ministerso religion, bank managers, doctors, vets and HousingServices Ocers.

How long do I have to claim?

You have until 28 February 2011 to lodge a claim or the

Permanently Impaired Git. Applications beyond this datemay be considered under exceptional circumstances.

For urther inormation

For urther inormation or advice on this git, please contactthe Victorian Bushre Appeal Fund on 1800 180 213 or viae-mail on vicbushfreappealund@dhs.vic.gov.au .

Application Forms or this git, and advice on other supportavailable through the Victorian Bushre Appeal Fund, areavailable at www.dhs.vic.gov.au/bushfreappeal .