A review of the accuracy of reported unspent home care funds and the capacity of providers to repay funds if required has found that initial discrepancies in reporting unspent funds were able to be eliminated or reduced, and 43 of the 44 Government and non-government home care providers that took part in the review had the capacity to return unspent funds if required.

The outcomes of the review, which involved examining 4,890 monthly statements for 815 care recipients over a six-month period, are included in a 32-page report released this week.

To assess a provider’s capacity to return unspent funds, the review team developed a cash coverage ratio. A cash coverage ratio of more than 1.0 indicated the provider was likely to be able to meet debt obligations.

Only four providers had a cash coverage ratio of less than 1.0, and actions were taken to improve their liquidity.

Incidental findings of the review were also noted in the report. The review found that fourteen providers charged care recipients for care and/or package management fees in a month but no service was documented as having been delivered that month.

Some providers voluntarily identified that they had unspent funds to be returned. The review team helped two providers voluntarily return $241,831 of unspent funds to Services Australia.

36 providers purchased potentially excluded items, most commonly IT and TVs, tradespeople, and whitegoods.

You can read the report in full here.

The SOURCE: Home care providers must take care to ensure they are meeting all their obligations in relation to unspent funds.