The waiting list for home care continues to hover around the 100,000 mark despite the release of almost 43,000 home care packages.
The Home care packages quarterly report for the period ending September 2020 shows 99,268 older Australians are still waiting for a home care package.
That figure includes 62,395 people were waiting for any sort of home care package and 36,873 waiting for their appropriate level of care.
That compares to 102,081 who were waiting at the end of the previous quarter.
The figures also show that people approved for a level 4 HCP can expect to wait more than a year for funding to come through.
Labor spokeswoman on aged care Julie Collins said that some older Australians were waiting up to three years for their approved package.
“Time and again, the government’s announcements of new home care packages have failed to address the true scale of Australia’s aged care crisis,” she said.
However, almost 150, 000 people were receiving a HCP at September 30 2020, 31,000 more than a year ago, according to the figures.
The report says the government released 42,900 home care packages in the September quarter, and there were 929 approved home care providers.
More packages on the way
The government announced in its midyear financial outlook released late last year that it would provide $851 million for 10,000 new home care packages across all levels.
It also said it would provide $8.7 million over the next four years to design business and service delivery models for a future home care system, and to undertake annual surveys of home care package providers.
The home care commitments would build on the priorities identified in the Interim Report of the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety handed down last year, the MYEFO says.
The government pledged to roll out 10,000 additional home care packages in its response to the Interim Report last November.
CHSP grants announced
Following the release of the figures, aged care services minister Richard Colbeck on Wednesday announced an additional $124.4 million in CHSP grants over the next two years.
The 1,400 organisations that provide CHSP services have until February 2 to apply.
Access the Home care packages program data report here.
This story first ran on Community Care Review.
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