I am disabled and find that many products that I require to live, without going into a home, are so expensive.
I recently bought a padded toilet surround bar from Factory Direct Mobility Aids in Hendon, S.A., with free postage to my home in country Queensland for nearly half the price that I was quoted by other companies nearer to home.
I also bought bulk cannulas for my oxygen concentrator on E-bay, at a price much cheaper than I could find locally.
My Blood Glucose Strips have gone from $.1.20 to $49.95 for a pack of 100 strips from a chemist after the 1st January, after the Government changed some conditions. I have since found them at $30 on E-bay.
The same applies to disability scooters and buying second hand is a winner.
I feel that there should be more controls in place when it comes to similar items, as it seems that the moment the name “disability” is added to a product then it becomes a reason to rip people off.
Absolutely agree - I’ve found it cheaper to buy things from Europe with international postage, at times at half the cost of buying from Australian stores. Although I’d rather buy local, it just gets too expensive.
My husband had found it expensive to buy personal monitor too.
I bought batteries for hearing aids at a fraction of the price on eBay, with very quick delivery.
Hi @linda.scott6,
Another Community member emailed me some information that may be of interest. Members of ‘accu-chekextra’ through the NDSS can reportedly access subsidised strips. Membership is free as far as I can see, the strips may be marginally cheaper than your eBay find.
Please note that while I have checked it out, I have no personal or professional experience with the service so I’d encourage you to have a detailed look and see if it’s worthwhile before making any decisions. Hope this info helps!
Thank you so much for this information Brendan, it is much appreciated.
I had a NDSS card which was valid until 31st December, 2016 and because I am pre-diabetic, I no longer qualify for this service any more, due to recent Government changes. On the plus side, I have lost 2 stone in weight in the past 18 months with the help of entering EVERYTHING I ate on the Myfitnesspal webside, by eating 1200 calories per day AND exercising on my treadmill for 30 minutes every day and my sugar levels are down. I am on oxygen 24/7 so I find it harder to get around but I am delighted with the results. I owe this change to the help I received from the lung nurses and the physiotherapist at my nearest hospital.
The NDSS do indeed subsidise the cost of test strips but some of the changes that came in have impacted non insulin dependent diabetics and pre-diabetics. However once you reach the PBS Safety Net many items become free on NDSS that had a subsidised charge before.
If you join the Diabetes Group for your State many also offer reductions on the cost of other items as well and this normally includes the lancets. This example is the link to the non member price list from Diabetes Qld https://www.diabetesqld.org.au/shop-online/products/Diabetes-Queensland-Products.aspx
Batteries for hearing aids can be easily and freely obtained if you purchase from your Hearing Services provider their annual Hearing Services Card/program (around $40 per year). This covers the cost of batteries, repairs, & adjustments for your supplied Hearing Aids. My wife and I use Hearing Services Australia and this year we have already received about 6 packs of batteries each, plus had 4 tubes replaced and some minor repairs due to sweat getting into the aids. The annual period is from when you start the service eg if acquired in April it will run till the next April.
