The consolidation of Australia’s residential sector appears to be gathering pace as providers deal with ongoing financial and compliance pressures.
This week, The Australian published data from the Department of Health and Aged Care showing that 16 aged care homes have shut their doors between June and October this year.
As we recently reported, this follows 32 aged care home closures in 2022-23, 33 in 2022-21 and 33 in 2021-20.
While the uptick doesn’t sound significant, the reality is that Australia is going backwards in terms of bed numbers.
According to the Department, 5,952 operational places opened between 1 July 2021 and 18 October 2023.
But 4,932 operational places have closed – resulting in a net increase of just 1,020 places.
Last week, Not For Profit retirement living, home care, and aged care provider Southern Cross Care NSW & ACT announced it would close its aged care home (pictured) in the Riverina district town of Moama, 200km north of Melbourne and 850km southwest of Sydney, blaming workforce shortages.
Respect Aged Care and Apollo Care – both aged care providers that are known for acquiring smaller, struggling providers, generally Not For Profits – are also reporting a huge level of interest in joining their organisations.
You can read more about the challenges for residential care providers looking to exit the sector in SATURDAY – subscribe here.
