PDF printable version of Funding boost for Home and Community Care in the ACT (PDF 32 KB)
22 February 2008
JE08/11
Joint Release
The Hon Justine Elliot MP
Australian Government
Minister for Ageing
Ms Katy Gallagher MLA
ACT Government
Minister for Health
Older and frail people, people with a disability and their carers living in the ACT will benefit from a further $1.9 million in funding for Home and Community Care services in the territory.
The funding will include extending the opening and operating hours of the programs conducted by the Aged Care and Rehabilitation Service at Kirra, Belconnen, and Tuggeranong Day Care Centre that provide activities and respite for frail, elderly and other ACT residents living with dementia, as well as their carers.
Kirra and Tuggeranong day care centres will be open Monday to Friday from
8.30 am to 4.30 pm rather than only from 10.00 am to 2.00 pm.
Under the agreement between the Australian and ACT Governments, older people in the ACT will receive domestic assistance, personal care, social support and respite care – so they can remain in their homes longer.
The Home and Community Care target population in the ACT in 2007-2008 is nearly 28,000, about eight per cent of the territory’s total population.
The ACT’s 2007-2008 Home and Community Care plan includes:
- an additional $100,000 to increase the operating hours of Kirra and Tuggeranong Day Care Centre that provide activities and respite for eligible ACT residents who are frail, elderly or are living with dementia
- $250,000 to upgrade the equipment provided under the ACT Equipment Scheme, which provides eligible people with goods and equipment essential for their complex care needs
- further funding for domestic assistance, personal care, social support, respite care and home maintenance.
The additional funding represents an increase of 8.6 per cent over the previous year’s funds.
The funding was announced today by the Federal Minister for Ageing, Justine Elliot, and the ACT Minister for Health, Katy Gallagher, as part of an agreement to work in partnership between the federal and territory governments.
“Improving the delivery of Home and Community Care services in the ACT provides more options for Canberra’s older people and those with a disability, and helps prevent their premature entry into residential aged care,” Mrs Elliot said.
“This also benefits carers by assisting them in their caring roles.”
In areas such as domestic assistance, personal care, home maintenance, respite care and centre-based day care, hours of service delivery are expected to increase by about 6.2 per cent during the year.
Ms Gallagher said: “The services will provide direct and vital assistance to a vulnerable and dependent segment of the ACT population.”
“The assistance is an important contribution to the health and wellbeing of the community,” she said.
This financial year the Australian Government is providing almost $12 million to the Home and Community Care program in the ACT. This is matched by a contribution of almost $12.5 million from the Australian Capital Territory Government.
The Home and Community Care program is a jointly funded Australian Government and state and territory government initiative that provides community care services to frail aged and younger people with disabilities and their carers, helping these people to remain living in their homes.
For more information, contact Mrs Elliot's office on (02) 6277 7280
To view PDF (Portable Document Format) documents, you will need to have a PDF reader installed on your computer. The Adobe Acrobat Reader is available free of charge from Adobe's website.
