The delayed introduction of aged care reforms that had been promised from 1 July this year will be a "blow" to the rights of older Australians, say the two peak bodies for older people, Council on the Ageing Australia (COTA Australia) and the Older Person's Advocacy Network (OPAN).
In a joint statement, the advocates for older Australians said the proposed delay in the introduction of rights-based law - leaked overnight on Monday and then confirmed by the Government on Tuesday - is "deeply concerning".
Pass legislation by year end
Older people "cannot wait another 15 months for their rights to be enshrined in legislation," said Craig Gear OAM, CEO of OPAN.
“While work is required to incorporate the extensive feedback provided by older people, their families and other people with an interest in aged care into the new Aged Care Act, we believe the time frame being suggested by aged care providers to be overly conservative if not excessive.
“Government has heard from all stakeholders, including older people, that factoring in transition time for some components of the Act would be appropriate, but we need the legislation introduced mid-year and passed by the end of the year."
"Simply unacceptable"
"The idea of pushing back this vital legislation to as late as July 2025 is simply unacceptable," said Patricia Sparrow, CEO of COTA Australia.
“Introducing the Bill for Parliamentary scrutiny by June 2024 is appropriate.
"Parliament provides the ideal platform for conducting the next level of public consultation on all aspects of the Bill through a senate inquiry, including the examination of consolidated rules and subordinate legislation.”
Read The SOURCE's coverage of the Government's decision to delay aged care reforms:
