The Aged and Community Care Providers' Association (ACCPA), the peak body for aged care providers, is calling on the Labor Government to introduce the new Aged Care Act to Parliament as soon as it resumes on Monday, 9 September.
Tom Symondson, CEO of ACCPA, who was also a member of the Government's Aged Care Taskforce, said, "If the new Act isn’t introduced immediately after parliament resumes in a fortnight, the chances of it passing before the next election are near zero."
The Weekly SOURCE has previously warned that if the legislation was not introduced this month, it was unlikely to be passed this year and would put the future reform timeline at risk.
In today's newsletter, we reported that the Government has made a number of concessions to the Opposition to pave the way for bipartisan support. In-principle agreement has been reached but the Coalition party room which has to support the agreement does not meet until 10 September.
The Labor Party campaigned on aged care reform before the election in 2022 and has openly stated those with the means should pay more for their care. The wait list for home care was more than 68,000 at the end of May, and the operating results of home care providers is tending downwards.
CEO ACCPA
"We have high hopes that these reforms will not only save our sector from financial collapse, but allow it to grow in response to the massive demand we will see as the population ages over the next two decades," Tom said.
“We will need hundreds of thousands of additional beds in the coming decades to meet demand from Australia’s ageing population. We should be building thousands each year not the few hundred we are currently managing due to a lack of financial viability.
"But none of that can happen if the legislation isn’t even introduced.
"The time for politics is well and truly over. This is too important. Quite simply, it’s now or never."