Gap free hip and knee replacement at Eastwood Private Hospital
Dr Luke Mooney is a participating surgeon in HCF's No-Gap Joints Program at Eastwood Private Hospital, the only hospital in South Australia taking part. Eligible HCF members having a hip or knee replacement pay nothing out of pocket for their surgeon, their anaesthetist or their hospital stay.
- Primary hip and knee replacement
- Mako robotic assisted surgery
- The only SA hospital in the program
Three parties, one agreement
A private joint replacement normally generates three separate bills, and a gap on each one. HCF's No-Gap Joints Program removes all three, because the fund, the hospital and the surgeon agree the terms in advance. It requires all three to be in the program, which is why it applies at one hospital in this state.
Adelaide hip and knee specialist and a participating surgeon in the program. Bills HCF directly, with no gap charged to you.
The only hospital in South Australia participating in the program. Opened in 2025, purpose built, with Mako robotic technology on site.
Covers the surgical, anaesthetic and hospital costs in full under the agreed program terms.
The program applies to primary hip and knee replacement performed by a participating surgeon at Eastwood Private Hospital for eligible HCF members. It does not extend to surgery at other hospitals, to other health funds, or to other procedures. Dr Mooney also operates at Calvary Adelaide Hospital, where normal out-of-pocket costs apply.
The program runs at Eastwood Private Hospital under an agreement current to 7 December 2027. HCF sets the program terms and can change them, so your eligibility is always confirmed with HCF before your surgery is booked.
What gap free actually means
A joint replacement normally generates three bills, and a gap on each. Here is exactly where you stand, including the two things the program does not cover.
Dr Mooney's surgical fee and his surgical assistant's fee, billed direct to HCF.
Your anaesthetist is a participating provider and bills HCF directly.
Accommodation, theatre, the agreed prosthesis, in-hospital pathology and imaging, and your in-hospital physiotherapy from pre-operative education through to rehabilitation.
Your hospital excess applies if this is your first hospital admission for the calendar year. Consultations in Dr Mooney's rooms, before and after surgery, sit outside the program and attract the usual consultation fee with a Medicare rebate.
There is no catch in the clinical care. The implants, the CT based planning, the robotic assistance and the length of your hospital stay are exactly as they would be for any other patient. The only thing that changes is who pays the bill.
Two honest caveats. Costs can still arise for services outside the agreed scope, for treatment of an unrelated medical condition during your admission, or for a complication needing care beyond what the program covers. And the program only works if every provider involved is participating, which the rooms confirm for you in advance.
Before anything is booked, Dr Mooney's rooms confirm your eligibility with HCF and give you your position in writing, so there are no surprises. To understand how private surgical fees work more generally, see fees and out-of-pocket costs.
Who this applies to
Four conditions need to be met. The rooms will check all of them with HCF on your behalf before your surgery is booked.
HCF hospital cover, held for at least 12 months
Your cover needs to include hip and knee replacement, and you need to have held it for at least twelve months with all waiting periods served. Overseas Visitors Health Cover is not included in the program. If you have recently switched funds or upgraded your cover, this is the condition to check first.
A primary hip or knee replacement
The program covers primary joint replacement, meaning a first replacement of that joint. Revision surgery, partial knee replacement and other procedures sit outside the program and are quoted individually.
Surgery at Eastwood Private Hospital
Eastwood Private is the only South Australian hospital in the program. Dr Mooney also operates at Calvary Adelaide Hospital, where the program does not apply and normal out-of-pocket costs would be quoted.
Clinical approval from both surgeon and hospital
The program requires Dr Mooney and Eastwood Private Hospital to confirm that you meet the clinical criteria, which happens as part of your normal work-up. Cost never drives the decision to operate. Dr Mooney will only recommend a joint replacement if your symptoms, examination and imaging support it, and if you have reached the point where non-surgical treatment is no longer giving you enough. Plenty of patients leave a first consultation with a plan that does not involve surgery.
A new, purpose built private hospital
Eastwood Private Hospital opened in August 2025 at 204 Greenhill Road, a few minutes from the Adelaide CBD, in the same building as Dr Mooney's consulting rooms at Orthopaedics 360. You are assessed, operated on and reviewed in one place.
It is a $90 million facility designed and built from the ground up for this kind of surgery, rather than adapted from older wards. That shows up in the things patients actually notice: private rooms, six modern theatres, and physiotherapy, radiology and pathology on site rather than somewhere across town.
- Six purpose built theatres, with Mako robotic technology on site
- 51 beds, with private rooms and HEPA filtered air in patient areas
- Physiotherapy, radiology and pathology on site
- 24 hour medical cover
- Around 300 car parks and a patient drop-off zone at the main entrance
- Consulting rooms and surgery in the same building
Every joint planned from your own CT scan
Before your operation, you have a CT scan of the joint. Dr Mooney uses that scan to build a three dimensional plan of your specific anatomy: implant size, position and alignment, worked out in advance rather than judged in theatre.
In the operating theatre, the Mako robotic arm holds him to that plan. It does not perform the operation. It defines the boundaries within which he works, so that bone is prepared and the implant is seated within the target he planned, and he can adjust the plan during surgery once he can see how your soft tissues behave.
Accurate implant position matters because it influences how the joint feels, how it moves and how long it is likely to last. It is the part of the operation most within a surgeon's control.
- Pre-operative CT planning for every hip and knee replacement
- Mako robotic assisted surgery at Eastwood Private Hospital
- Direct Anterior Approach for hip replacement, a muscle sparing technique
- Plan adjusted during the operation based on your soft tissue balance
Dr Luke Mooney
Dr Mooney is an Adelaide orthopaedic surgeon whose practice is built around hip and knee replacement. He trained in robotic assisted joint replacement in Perth, as one of the first surgeons in Australia to complete a dedicated robotic fellowship, and is a Clinical Senior Lecturer at the University of Adelaide.
He is the principal surgeon at Orthopaedics 360 in Eastwood and operates at Eastwood Private Hospital and Calvary Adelaide Hospital, with clinics across metropolitan Adelaide and the South East.
- MBBS, FRACS, FAOrthA
- Clinical Senior Lecturer, University of Adelaide
- Dedicated robotic joint replacement fellowship, Perth 2016
- Practice focused on hip and knee replacement
How it works
From first phone call to your operation, this is what to expect.
Get a GP referral
Ask your GP for a referral to Dr Luke Mooney. A referral is required for Medicare rebate purposes. Your GP can refer you on the basis of your symptoms.
Book your consultation
Call the rooms on (08) 7077 0157 or book online. Mention that you are with HCF when you book so the team can start the eligibility check early.
Have your consultation
Dr Mooney examines you, reviews your imaging and talks through the options. Surgery is only recommended when it is the right step for you.
Eligibility confirmed in writing
If you proceed, the rooms verify your cover with HCF and send you written financial consent showing exactly what you will and will not pay before your date is locked in.
Frequently asked questions
It means there is no out-of-pocket cost for the three fees that normally make up the bill for a joint replacement: the surgeon's fee, the anaesthetist's fee, and the hospital costs including theatre, your accommodation, the agreed prosthesis, in-hospital tests and your in-hospital physiotherapy. Dr Mooney and Eastwood Private Hospital bill HCF directly.
Two things sit outside it. Your hospital excess applies if this is your first hospital admission for the calendar year, and consultations in Dr Mooney's rooms before and after surgery are charged as usual, with a Medicare rebate.
The program covers primary hip and knee replacement, meaning a first replacement of that joint, performed by a participating surgeon at Eastwood Private Hospital. That includes Direct Anterior Approach hip replacement, robotic hip replacement and total knee replacement.
Other procedures, including partial knee replacement and revision surgery, are not part of the program and are quoted individually. Call the rooms on (08) 7077 0157 to confirm the position for your procedure.
Yes. Your hospital excess is payable if this is your first hospital admission for the calendar year. The excess is set by your HCF policy, not by Dr Mooney or the hospital, and HCF can tell you what yours is.
You need HCF hospital cover that includes hip and knee replacement, held for at least twelve months with all waiting periods served. Overseas Visitors Health Cover is not included. Your operation needs to be a primary hip or knee replacement at Eastwood Private Hospital, and both Dr Mooney and the hospital need to confirm you meet the clinical criteria.
Dr Mooney's rooms will check your eligibility with HCF before anything is booked and confirm your position in writing.
No. The program covers your hospital admission. Appointments in Dr Mooney's consulting rooms, including your first consultation and your post-operative reviews, are outpatient services and are charged at the usual consultation fee, with a Medicare rebate where you hold a valid GP referral.
The No-Gap Joints Program is an HCF program and applies to HCF members only. Patients with other funds are still very welcome, and Dr Mooney's rooms will give you a written estimate of your out-of-pocket cost before your procedure is booked.
A small number of other funds also contribute at the full recommended fee, which means no gap. Call the rooms with your fund details, or see fees and out-of-pocket costs.
Yes. A valid GP referral is required for Medicare rebate purposes, and it is required before your first consultation regardless of which fund you are with. Your GP can refer you on the basis of your symptoms.
No. The surgery, the implants, the planning and the hospital stay are exactly the same as for any other patient. Every hip and knee replacement Dr Mooney performs is planned from a pre-operative CT scan, and Mako robotic assistance is used at Eastwood Private Hospital.
The only thing that changes is who pays the bill.
Not under this program. Eastwood Private Hospital is the only South Australian hospital participating. Dr Mooney also operates at Calvary Adelaide Hospital, but surgery there is not covered and normal out-of-pocket costs would be quoted.
Understanding your operation
Hip replacement
The Direct Anterior Approach, robotic assisted hip replacement, and what recovery actually looks like.
Hip surgery →Knee replacement
Total and partial knee replacement, Mako robotic technique, and how the right operation is chosen.
Knee surgery →Gap free, explained
What the No-Gap Joints Program means in practice, why it exists, and the questions patients ask most.
Read the article →With HCF? Find out where you stand.
Call the rooms with your HCF details and the team will check your eligibility. A GP referral is required for Medicare rebate purposes.
The information on this page is provided as general information only and does not constitute medical advice. HCF's No-Gap Joints Program is administered by HCF, which sets and may change its terms. Eligibility depends on your own HCF policy and is verified with HCF before your surgery is booked. HCF is a registered trade mark of The Hospitals Contribution Fund of Australia Limited and is used here with permission. Individual circumstances vary, so please consult Dr Mooney or your GP to discuss your specific situation.