2022–23 October Budget: A new era of aged care
The Government’s 2022–23 October Budget responds directly to 23 of the recommendations of the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety.
These aged care reforms will:
- Deliver fair and responsive residential and in-home aged care services.
- Provide targeted assistance for older Australians with diverse backgrounds, experiences and care needs.
- Build a strong, valued and qualified aged care workforce.
- Ensure a more transparent and accountable aged care sector with independent oversight.
Who will benefit
Older Australians, their families and carers will benefit from a fair, responsive, and accountable aged care sector. The new measures will:
- make sure aged care residents have access to a registered nurse in every aged care facility on site, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
- enable a sector average of 215 care minutes per resident per day
- ensure better food for aged care residents
- provide tailored support for older people with disability
- increase access to culturally safe care for First Nations Elders and older Australians from diverse communities
- limit the amount home care recipients can be charged in administration and management fees
- redesign in-home aged care to meet the changing needs of older Australians
- empower older Australians to make informed choices
- introduce stronger regulation and independent oversight to protect older Australians from neglectful practices.
Aged care workers will be trained, valued and recognised for the complex and critical services they provide. The reforms will:
- improve pathways for employment with a national registration scheme
- set clear expectations with a new Code of Conduct
- provide opportunities for training and support
- improve ICT platforms to ease administrative burden
- strengthen protections for people that reports inappropriate practices.
Aged care providers will be supported in the transition to new reporting requirements, funding and regulations, including:
- fair pricing and funding arrangements for in-home and residential aged care
- funding to adjust to the Australian National Aged Care Classification (AN-ACC)
- more subsidies to meet increased nursing requirements
- greater transparency measures to create an open market where providers compete on quality of care
- establishing independent oversight to hold providers accountable
- local Department of Health and Aged Care contact to identify issues and solutions.
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