Providers should not delay preparations
The Act’s new start date does not mean providers should relax, advises Ageing Australia CEO Tom Symondson, who tells AAA he plans to use the additional time to address key issues ahead of the transition.
Soon after Ageing Australia chief executive officer Tom Symondson delivered the CEO address to aged care providers at the peak’s state conference in Melbourne on Wednesday, he addressed them again in the exhibitor showroom during morning tea to tell them the new Aged Care Act would now start in November.
He also returned to the stage after lunch to answer questions from providers in the room.
Because while it was the news many had hoped for – and cheered over – it was not what they had been expecting.
“This is a surprise, but it’s a very, very welcome one,” Mr Symondson told Australian Ageing Agenda in a video interview immediately after the announcement (full six-minute version below).
But he also said the new start date should not change providers’ attention on preparation.
“All the advice stays the same. We have to continue to focus on readiness,” said Mr Symondson.
The government, consumer advocates and the community will rightly be watching for any signs of complacency among providers, he said.
“I know our members won’t do that, but we’ve got to be really clear in our public commentary that we’re not doing that. So my advice remains the same. It’s just now instead of having to get everything ready without any of the detail, the government now has more time to get that detail out so that it can be seen, understood.
“We can fix the bits of it that don’t work instead of it potentially coming out on the 30th of June at 11.59 PM and us having to implement it as soon as we get up the following day. That’s what changes,” he told AAA.
Mr Symondson is hoping the delay gives the sector enough time to solve issues with home care agreements and start talking about addressing the 10 per cent cap on care management and its impact on both providers and older people with complex needs.
“We can be much more clear about the importance of sustainability for residential aged care, making sure that these changes allow us to be investable again so we can start building,” he added.
The new start date means providers can also make sure “the changes happen well rather than in a mass panic and a huge rush,” Mr Symondson told AAA. “That’s where we will focus this transition. It’s not go home and relax. It’s we have to get on with this, but with a little less time pressure.”
Watch the full video interview below. It includes commentary on:
- what the delay means for providers
- why a delay is also good for consumers (from 1:10)
- when he knew this announcement was coming (1:55)
- how a delay is legally possible (2:45)
- current advice for providers ahead of the transition (3:30
- priority fixes before the Act starts (4:40).
In the video, Mr Symondson refers to a three-month delay, but he clarified later he should have said four-month delay.
Comment on the story below. Follow Australian Ageing Agenda on LinkedIn and Facebook, sign up to our twice-weekly newsletter and subscribe to AAA magazine for the complete aged care picture.
