Aged care providers will not directly receive any of the $1.4 billion announced in the 2024 Federal Budget to upgrade aged care technology systems, it was revealed at the Department of Health and Aged Care's 'Tech Talk' webinar on Tuesday.
In the last five minutes of the webinar, which were allocated to questions, only two were asked, and both related to the availability of those funds for providers, one noting that most providers did not have the financial reserves in invest in technology upgrades.
The $1.4 billion investment, from $2.2 billion given to aged care in the Federal Budget, will deliver "critical aged care reform", including approximately $600 million for the sustainment of key systems and $800 million for the implementation of reforms, including the new Aged Care Act and Support at Home, explained Fay Flevaras, First Assistant Secretary Digital Transformation & Delivery - Aged Care Reform.
"The $1.2 billion does not include any direct grant funding for providers at this the stage," she said.
Even though providers will not directly receive technology grants, Fay said the Government investments will benefit providers in several ways including:
- streamlined interactions with Government, including reporting through the Government Provider Management System (GPMS);
- allowing for sharing of information across the health and care sectors;
- reducing the administrative burden on providers through interoperability technology;
- creating workforce efficiencies enabling aged care providers and their workforce to spend more time delivering the high quality care;
- improved worker screening and registration processes;
- the regulatory framework will also be more efficient; and
- subsidies and payments made by the Australian Government to aged care providers under the new Act will also be more efficient.