Support arrives with extra home care packages
The Minister for Aged Care has announced more than 80,000 additional home care packages from July along with this week’s passing of Aged Care Bill 2024.
Following Monday’s announcement of the passing of the Aged Care Bill 2024 to make the new Aged Care Act law, Minister for Aged Care Anika Wells outlined an additional 83,000 packages for the first year of the Support at Home program.
The commitment for these packages is among reform changes shadow aged care minister Anne Ruston said on Friday the opposition had secured as part of the Senate inquiry and debate process.
It means the government will release the largest home care package delivery on record, with 107,000 in total over the next two years across both the existing and incoming home care systems.
Under Support at Home, participants will be assessed into one of 10 new funding classifications – up from four under the existing Home Care Packages program – and be able to access home modifications and assistive technology to maintain independence.
The new packages are for Support at Home, while everybody on the national priority waitlist or a package at 12 September this year will remain under the current HCP program, Ms Wells told a press conference on Monday afternoon.
“The new Support at Home system will be for the people who are coming into the system after 1 July. So that will be where the 83,000 new packages come in,” Ms Wells said.
She said the government was “conscious of the waitlist” of 76,000 people waiting for home care packages and pointed to the ongoing rollout of the additional 24,100 HCPs announced in the May Budget to those assessed under the existing rules and levels.
“I think we’ll be at 15,500 of those rolled out by the end of this week. They’ll continue to roll out as we move through to 1 July, and then come 1 July, 83,000 new packages… Compared to the biggest release previously, which is 80,000 across two years, to do 83,000 in one year recognises that people have been waiting, and we want to move as quickly as we can,” she said.
“Support at Home is targeted to bring waitlists down to an average of three months by 2027,” she said.
The additional packages have the support of consumer peak bodies including the Older Persons Advocacy Network.
“They will help to address the long wait times older people are currently experiencing for Home Care Packages – for someone who has been approved at a medium priority level for a Level 4 HCP, that can be as long as 15 months,” OPAN director policy and systemic advocacy Samantha Edmonds told Australian Ageing Agenda.
“We also look forward to seeing more details around how the government will reach its stated target of an average wait time of three months for the Support at Home program by 2027.”
Ms Wells confirmed that taxpayers would cover the cost of clinical care under Support at Home and would also give $7.80 for every dollar that older people are asked to give via a co-contribution towards service costs.
In response to questions around financial difficulties for some older people, Ms Wells said there was a “safety net” in place and financial provisions available for those experiencing hardship.
National Seniors Australia chief executive officer Chris Grice said that despite the new Aged Care Act a passing being positive step forward in the reform process, the peak was “greatly concerned” about the people on the home care wait list who have suffered in the meantime.
“Wait times for Home Care Packages have been steadily increasing since June 2023 because there haven’t been enough packages released to meet growing demand,” Mr Grice told AAA.
“The current wait time for medium priority is three to six months for a level 1 package, and 12-15 months for a level 4 package. The overall wait list has more than doubled in two years with around 76,000 currently waiting for home care support.”
Mr Grice went on to say that the problem lies in basic mathematics.
“We need to play catch-up. The additional packages promised for 2025-26 must be released now to make any dent on the wait list and improve wait times. Our concern is these packages will not be released fast enough for people currently waiting for a package,” he said.
“We also need a unified approach to workforce to ensure skilled and committed staff to deliver these packages, especially in regional and rural Australia where the challenges are even greater.”
On whether Australia has enough workers to service the home care packages, Ms Wells told the press conference boosting workers’ pay is already making a positive difference.
“Obviously we’re in a global race for workers in the care economy, but we also know that the $15 billion pay rise that we have given to aged care workers has created really sharp improvements in staff retention and recruitment rates,” she said.
“I met with a provider of rural and remote services. He said that his staff turnover has dropped 40 per cent since the pay rises.”
Ms Wells said the “levers that we have pulled this term” are genuinely making a difference.
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You mean watered down home care packages with co contributions for services that many older Australians will forgo? The ones that won’t be able to be catered for because many providers will be exiting the sector on July 1st?
There is going to be a lot of anger, confusion & frustration when the implementation begins. Many changes are limiting choice even more (&/or by default as people find they have to pay more for even less choice).
Some changes are already being gradually introduced which muddies the water in terms of existing clients being reassured that they will stay on current program but this ends up being not completely true. Feels like ‘sneaky advantage-taking’ & adds to the confusion more.
Simple example – questions about impact on self-managing clients have either not been responded to/answered at all or get ‘glib reassurances’ that they can continue to self manage. Document from last October has emerged from the woodwork, saying that people can continue to self-manage BUT they still have to have Provider overseeing everything, Choices of how or what self management options can be chosen is negotiated/agreed to by individual providers WITH the client & assessment of need & Care Plans are done together. This actually means there is NO choice as Providers are already telling clients what they have to do & that clients are NOT ALLOWED to participate in the development of the Care Plan (they can provide all the info but not work on the actual Plan) – that will be developed/checked by the Nurses who won’t even meet with them, & their plan will be ‘given’ to them. DOESN’T SOUND LIKE CHOICE OR PARTNERSHIP OR COLLABORATION TO ME. Providers will continue to have the right/ ability to determine what will or can be included & what they will ‘choose’ to allow the self-managing clients to do.
NO capacity to make your own choices about what services & which providers you want – historically this has been the key factor for many, in why they chose to self manage. There may have been issues that needed to be addressed but restricting & limiting options or choices for ALL is not the solution if there is going to be any real choice or partnership.