Catholic Healthcare has posted a $55.9 million deficit for the 2021-22 financial year, which it says reflects the broader financial doldrums afflicting the aged care sector.

Despite an increase in normalised revenue from $339.3 million in 2020-21 to $365.9 million in 2021-22, the large Not For Profit – which owns more than 43 residential aged care homes and 12 retirement villages, as well as home care services – saw its deficit grow by $13 million to $55.9 million, up from $42.9 million last year.

According to CEO Karen Borg (pictured), this year Government Home Care Packages outnumbered residential aged care beds around Australia for the first time.

“While the increase in subsidised packages is welcome, there are not enough aged care workers to meet the current needs of the residential and home care sectors, let alone cover the increase.

“At the same time, around two in three residential care providers are currently operating at a loss, with government subsidies still falling short of what is required to ensure a sustainable system. This issue is reflected in our own financial position,” she said.

Other large Not For Profits such as BaptistCare and HammondCare have also posted deficits for FY22, though far smaller.