The delegates left at the National Retirement Living summit on Friday morning had been told of a special address by the Minister for Aged Care Anika Wells.
"I'm sorry that I couldn't be there in person as Parliament is sitting. So, I've had to record this message a week in advance,” she said.
"I know everyone there today is eagerly awaiting the government's response to the Aged Care Taskforce, and we are well into consultations with key stakeholders, including those in the room today on the shape of that response. We have already heard the next generation of people entering aged care are going to want a different model and standard of care than those before them.
"The principles that guide the Albanese government's response to the taskforce's report are to deliver lasting and enduring reforms that will benefit not just those in the system now, but Australians who rely on that system in the decades to come."
Then Retirement Living Council Executive Director Daniel Gannon introduced the Shadow Minister to speak in person on stage.
"It was great yesterday afternoon when Parliament got up to be able to jump on a plane and come up here because one of the things I find most useful is understanding what the whole journey of aged care looks like by actually getting into a room and speaking to people first hand,” said the Shadow Minister.
“What you offer as the retirement living sector is a vital piece of the puzzle as we go through this reform journey. I've just been through the journey with my mother, who sadly passed away last year.”
"Her journey through retirement living was a wonderful one for her and I think that what we need to do is to make sure that older Australians understand that the journey of retirement living can be a great one, as long as you get the right advice and that you get the product that best suits your needs."Because I looked at what mum went through. She had greater independence for a long period of time. The social connection and interaction that she was able to be afforded by being in that community was fantastic. You know, she took up playing bridge and all sorts of things that she wouldn't have had she stayed in her own freestanding home. The access she got to services that she may not have been able to; she was part of a strong community and made lots of great new friends. She was living in an age friendly way that supported her."
The Shadow Minister's personal story endeared her to the delegates, many who questioned why the Minister, whose electorate is Lilley, Brisbane, was not able to be there in person.
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