New aged care regulatory model

Hi, I'm Rob Day from the Department of Health and Aged Care. In the next few minutes, I'd like to take you through the Provider Registration Preview, which is the next step in preparing to transition aged care providers to the New Aged Care Act (new Act).

As many of you already know, one feature of the new regulatory model for aged care, is that providers in all aged care programs will need to be registered and each provider organisation will have one registration covering all of the aged care programs that they deliver.

This transition will be automatic for all current providers when the new Act comes into effect on 1 July 2025. The process to make this happen is called deeming. We’re managing the deeming process in stages to make sure that we get it right.

Last year we reached out to providers to undertake a deeming validation process. Providers were asked to confirm their best point of contact, and this was followed by a review of proposed registration details, based on the information we have on file.

The process both provided early visibility for providers and let us test the algorithm that we will use for deeming. Now we're ready to provide a more detailed preview of the way providers will be set up after deeming in the Government Provider Management System, or GPMS.

It's okay if you didn't receive or didn't respond to the validation survey. Every provider will be included in the preview phase.

The registration preview will allow all aged care providers, including those providing residential care, home care packages, CHSP and flexible Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander care (under the NATSIFAC program) to confirm their registration details and categories to support the deeming process.

This step will help you prepare and ensure that your details are reflected correctly in GPMS from 1 July. I know that some of you will already be using GPMS and others of you will be accessing it, for the first time on 1 July. In both cases, GPMS will become the single source of truth for all government-funded aged care provider information. Getting deeming right also means that you'll be able to continue to deliver services from day one of the new Act, and that your regulatory obligations will be tailored to the type of organisation you represent, and the services you provide.

Just to be clear, deeming isn't an opportunity for new providers to become registered or for existing providers to change your service categories. You can help make the preview as smooth as possible by ensuring your details are up to date. If your organisation is already using GPMS, you can make updates using the Manage Your Organisation tile.

For grant-funded organisations, changes can be made through your funding account manager. You can also visit the department's website to read about the process and get detailed instructions on getting your information up to date. We will use a data extract from mid-March to populate the preview.

If you have an outstanding request to update your information at that time, the changes may not be reflected in your provider registration preview. However, we will action the change ahead of the final deeming process that will happen in June. 

So, what will you see in the preview? The department will send a PDF copy of your registration details by email. The email will come from: noreply@communications.health.gov.au. So please look out for it. Your registration details might look something like this (Image of what registration preview will look like appears on screen).

The registration preview has grouped all of the information that will be used for your registration under the following headings: 

• Registered provider details
• Registration and service delivery
• Registration category or categories
• Responsible person or people
• Associated provider
• Funding for specialist aged care programs
• Service delivery branch in home and community care and 
• approved residential aged care homes. 

There will also be instructions if you need support or details on how to update your information.

Please review the content to check that all the information is correct for the services that you provide. The registration preview will be sent via email as a PDF attachment in April. We’ll only be able to send that preview email once. If you participated in the deeming validation survey last year, the preview will be sent to your nominated contact.

If you are unable to participate in that validation process, the preview will be sent to the contact details listed in GPMS or as held by the department in your grant funding agreement. Please review the content carefully to ensure the information reflects the services you are currently providing. It’ll be a good idea to share the preview with other members of your team for confirmation, such as your operational and financial colleagues, to make sure that all the relevant information is included.

If the information is correct, you don't have to do anything. If there's anything wrong, please let us know by 5pm on the 1st of June 2025, following the instructions for support or updates provided in the preview document. This is a big process, so we need your help to keep it running as smoothly as possible. 

We are working with our colleagues in the Commission (Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission), the community Grants Hub, and across the department, to make sure that we can action any changes you identify. But we need to know by the 1st of June so that we have time to update the details in GPMS and be ready for when the new Act comes into effect on the 1st of July.

During June, we will action any updates to details that you send through and use that information for the deeming process. The registration preview is for you, the provider, to make sure you have been registered correctly so that you can continue providing the quality and safe care our older people deserve.

Thanks for all you're doing and please reach out for help if you need using the details on the screen (contact information displayed on screen).