“Without enough time and funding to support the sector to transition [to the new Aged Care Act] properly, we risk sector instability, complications and confusion," says the peak body's CEO Tom Symondson on the afternoon before the release of the 2025-26 Federal Budget, which is expected to contain little new for aged care.
“Relieving the workforce crisis, transition to the new Support at Home Program and time to implement reforms properly are our absolute top priorities," he said.
“All providers, from very small to very large, are likely to struggle if reforms are rushed.
"The sector needs certainty on what is required, funding and support for transition, and enough time to get it done."
Tom, who is a member of the Aged Care Transition Taskforce, told last week's LEADERS SUMMIT the peak body has been calling for realistic timeframes and a staged approach to implementing reforms of such magnitude.
"Aged care is not fixed. It was never going to be fixed in three years; that was unrealistic," Tom said.
On 6 March, Tom told The Weekly SOURCE the implementation timeline for Support at Home "borders on impossible".
Recommendations informed by aged care providers
Now Ageing Australia is making nine recommendations, informed by its aged care provider members. They are:
- Support sustainable funding and optimise the implementation of the Aged Care Taskforce’s recommendations by conducting the review of the Accommodation Supplement as soon as possible; cost and fund high quality care, including new program administration and business costs, as per the definitions in the new Act; ensure residential aged care providers are adequately funded to meet the new requirements in the service list.
- Revise funding settings for the Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP) to ensure it remains viable, as the 3.5% indexation from 1 July 2024 was insufficient to address provider wages costs.
- Invest $391.5 million annually to re-introduce the Aged Care Payroll Tax Supplement paid to private residential care providers who, unlike Not For Profit providers, are not exempt from State Government payroll taxes.
- Establish a taskforce to develop a National Aged Care Workforce Strategy with a $0.5 million investment in 2025-26 to establish a National Aged Care Workforce Strategy Taskforce to undertake data collection, sector-specific projections, and identify strategies to address gaps in skills, staffing shortages, and changing care demands.
- Build a sustainable aged care workforce equipped to meet increasing future demand through: establishing an Aged Care Worker Attraction Fund to attract workers to the aged care sector, especially in rural and remote areas; investing in training and skills development opportunities for aged care workers; increasing funding for the Aged Care Capital Assistance Program to support capital works for on-site accommodation for staff.
- Improve access to migrant workers to build a sustainable workforce with a $9 million investment over three years to establish: a sector-led migration advisory service for aged care providers to access and retain their migrant workers; and an International Workforce Council to support cross-sectoral collaboration and develop innovative solutions to improve the aged care sector’s ability to access migrant workers.
- Provide transition support to held aged care providers implement the new Act including: from the commencement of the Support at Home program, funding Care Management at 20% of the consumer’s package value, for the first year to support transition and market stability; and $188 million for a transition supplement to support the aged care sector transition to the new Act. This supplement would help providers cover the costs associated with implementing the new Act.
- Provide $600 million to establish an Information and Communications Technology (ICT) grant program for aged care providers to meet the obligations of the new Act, comprised of $400 million for capital expenses (including system acquisition and upgrades) and $200 million for operational expenses (including training and skilled staff).
- Provide $2.5 million to fund a three-month pilot of Hospital in the Home in eight retirement villages.
Ageing Australia advocated for the Federal Government for $1.8 billion to release 55,000 Home Care Packages in the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook (MYEFO) 2024-25 (approximately $33,000 per Package) in December 2024, but only 7,615 additional Packages were promised in addition to the 24,100 announced in the previous May Budget.
