The federal government has reached a deal with the opposition for long-awaited aged care reforms, including $4.3 billion for in-home services.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the reforms will be the “greatest improvement” to the sector in 30 years and could bring savings of $12.6 billion over the next decade.
“$4.3 billion will be invested in Support at Home, to come into effect on the first of July next year,” Albanese announced at Parliament House today.
The new Aged Care Act will be introduced to parliament this afternoon and is expected to pass with bipartisan support.
The $5.6 billion changes are set to affect the availability of funding for residential aged care, including a “no worse off” assurance that people currently in aged care won’t be asked to pay more for their care.
The government also promised stronger powers to investigate and penalise bad behaviour by providers.
The prime minister thanked the opposition for their constructive engagement on the issue.
“Reforms like this do not happen every day. They are once in a generation, and my government is proud to deliver them, as we said we would,” Albanese said.
”More Australians are living longer and that is a good thing.
“But I know that older Australians worry about going into aged care, and I know that their children and grandchildren worry about it as well.
“This is about caring for the generation that cared for us.”
The net impact of the changes is expected to be a $930 million spend over four years.
Over the next 10 years, however, the government says the measures could save $12.6 billion.
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Aged Care Minister Anika Wells said the new Support at Home program would aim to reduce the wait for in-home care down to three months by July 2027.
The program will cover at-home support for:
- Clinical care (including nursing care and occupational therapy)
- Independence (help with showering, getting dressed or taking medications)
- Everyday living (like cleaning, gardening, shopping or meal preparation)
The government pledged to pay for 100 per cent of clinical care services.
Individuals will contribute more toward the cost of independence and everyday living costs.
Self-funded retirees and part-pensioners will pay more under the new deal, while fully supported pensioners will be exempt from higher charges.
