The Deputy Secretary for the Ageing and Aged Care division at the Department of Health and Aged Care, Michael Lye, has written to all 275,000 recipients of Home Care Packages warning them providers are likely to be increasing prices in the coming months to reflect wage rises coming into effect on 1 January 2024 and 1 October 2025.
Mr Lye said the Government is fully funding the wage increases, so care recipients "should" not see a reduction in their services, however, he warned that it can be "hard to know whether the price charged is reasonable or not".
Any increase in prices requires providers to update Home Care Agreements, which requires care recipients to give their consent to the changes.
"Your provider must discuss any changes to your Home Care Agreement with you and seek your agreement before putting the changes in place," the Deputy Secretary wrote to care recipients.
"Your provider will need to explain any proposed changes, why they are making them, and when these changes will take effect."
There will likely be a small proportion of customers who refuse the price rises, which puts providers in the difficult position of having to cover the increase themselves, particularly challenging in the current high-inflation environment.
StewartBrown's survey results for the 2023-24 financial year showed home care providers are already seeing a steady decline in their profitability.
The wage rises reflect Stage 3 of the Fair Work Commission's Work Value case for aged care workers, which in total will increase aged care worker wages by nearly 30%.
