In an exciting development and a further sign that new funding arrangements for aged care are getting closer, the Aged Care Taskforce’s terms of reference and links to communiques have been transferred to the country’s top office of Prime Minister and Cabinet.
The information on the Taskforce, which has been under the umbrella of the Department of Health and Aged Care, can now only be found on the Prime Minister’s website.
There are just 58 days until October when the Taskforce, chaired by Minister for Aged Care and Sport Anika Wells, is due to present its interim advice – and just 17 weeks until December when the Final Report is expected to be handed down.
Sources told the Financial Review that most of the discussion at the last meeting of the Taskforce focused on DCM Group's Plan B – increasing consumer contributions for older Australians who can afford to contribute to their aged care services. This includes lifting the $186,000 means test threshold on the family home, which has been in place since 2014 – almost a decade.
The cost of aged care is expected to rise by 23% next financial year to $29.6 billion and become the fifth-largest area of Government expenditure.
The number of people in aged care has increased to about 1.5 million, growing by 3.5% in two years. That trend will continue and will cost taxpayers $36 billion a year by 2026.
The SOURCE: Despite no official announcement, this must show the importance the Government is taking the need to change aged care funding for the better.
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