What monthly statements are
Monthly statements are for people who receive home care packages. The statements show:
- the available funds in their package at the start of the month
- a breakdown of funds received and spent during the month
- the amount of unspent funds remaining at the end of the month.
Template for monthly statements
We recommend you use our monthly statement template. This will:
- make statements easier for your care recipients to understand
- help them to make informed choices about the use of their package funds.
See our provider guide for a detailed explanation of the template and how to use it effectively. We encourage you to share our consumer guide with your care recipients.
What to include in the monthly statement
A person’s monthly statement must include the amount of:
- home care subsidy for the person for the month
- home care fees (if any) paid or payable by the person for the month, and any unpaid home care fees relating to previous months
- unspent funds the person has for the previous and current month, split into:
- home care account balance
- provider-held care recipient portion of unspent funds
- provider-held Commonwealth portion of unspent funds
- the care recipient portion of unspent funds you received from another provider during the month (if any).
The monthly statement must also include:
- a list of the care and services provided to the person during the month
- the price for each of these services for the month
- the total of these prices.
When to provide a monthly statement
Once care and services start, you must:
- provide monthly statements for any month you provide home care, even if the person does not receive services or has taken temporary leave
- do this as soon as possible after you have all the information you need.
We recommend you issue monthly statements once you submit your monthly claim to Services Australia. You should not delay issuing a monthly statement without reason.
Discussing the monthly statement
You must also help a person to understand their monthly statement. Use our consumer guidance to help them understand how their budget has been spent and what funds are available.
If needed, use the Translating and Interpreting Service.
This should be part of your ongoing care discussions with the person.
Legislation
For full details, go to 21B – Monthly statement of available funds and expenditure to be given to care recipient in the User Rights Principles 2014.