Aged service group calls for review of aged care funding
Aged service group calls for a comprehensive review of aged care funding
Aged & Community Services Australia (ACSA) is calling for any review of the $1.2 billion in cuts to the Aged Care Funding Instrument (ACFI) to be comprehensive rather than quick, following the collapse of a Senate vote for an inquiry by the Greens and the Xenophon team.
The Labor Opposition announced in September they would introduce a private member’s bill into Parliament to look at aged care funding. While President Paul Sadler has welcomed the move, he’s asking for it to take place in a “timely manner” as the sector tries to address the rapid changes in regulations that are going on.
Modelling done by ACSA indicates the proposed cuts, which were announced in the May budget, will reduce funding per residents by an average of $6,655 a year. It would also affect other areas, such as the industry’s ability to invest in its workforce, which could in turn decrease the quality of care services are able to provide to their residents.
At ACSA’s National Conference in September, the Health Minister Sussan Ley said the Government was committed to consultation with the aged care sector, but made it clear that: “savings have to be made.”
g