A major disability and care advocacy group is warning that Australia is losing billions in taxpayer dollars every year as profits from disability, aged care and childcare providers are funnelled overseas instead of being reinvested into the people and services that need them most.
Spinal Life Australia says the problem has been hiding in plain sight. Foreign owned operators and private equity firms are capturing a growing share of the care economy, using government subsidies to generate profits that never return to Australian communities.
Chief Executive Officer Mark Townend says the situation is undermining the long term sustainability of the entire system. “Successive Federal Governments have struggled to manage the growing cost of Australia’s care economy – yet little has been done to address the fundamental problem,” he says.
“Right now, taxpayer money that’s meant to support Australians with disability, older Australians, and working families are being turned into profits for foreign shareholders. That’s not just unsustainable – it’s unacceptable.”
The scale of Australia’s care economy is vast. The NDIS alone is projected to cost $52.3 billion in 2025–26, with spending expected to rise to $63.4 billion by 2028–29. Aged care spending reached $36.4 billion in 2023–24, while childcare investment reached $17.9 billion in 2024–25. Combined, these sectors represent more than $100 billion in annual public funding.
Townend says the numbers reveal the problem with stark simplicity. If $20 billion of NDIS funding is flowing to providers owned by overseas private equity firms, and those firms deliver a 25 percent margin, that means $5 billion in taxpayer funded profit is leaving Australia each year. That is money not spent on support workers, therapy, home care, training, quality improvement or community infrastructure.
“This isn’t about competition or the free market, it’s about the integrity of public funding,” he says. “Every dollar that leaves Australia in profit is a dollar not spent on improving care quality, growing the workforce, or delivering better outcomes for participants. It’s public money – not private capital – and it should stay here.”
The trend is not limited to the disability sector. Large overseas backed aged care operators have been consolidating market share for more than a decade, often benefiting from subsidies intended to support older Australians. Childcare has followed the same pattern, with foreign investors increasingly dominating the market.
The Federal Government has signalled concern, allocating $175.4 million over four years to safeguard the integrity of the NDIS. But without structural reform to keep profits onshore, advocates fear these measures will fall short.
“The same story is repeating itself: foreign companies setting up shop, profiting from taxpayer subsidies, and moving those profits offshore,” Townend says. “It’s time for the Federal Government to step in and ensure that public funding for care is reinvested into Australia’s care system, not siphoned out of it.”
Spinal Life Australia wants political parties to commit to policies that prioritise Australian owned providers and encourage reinvestment in local care delivery, workforce development and infrastructure. Townend says intervention is justified given what is at stake. “This might be seen as interventionist policy, but it’s for the right reasons. We’re not talking about restricting enterprise – we’re talking about protecting the integrity of Australia’s care economy and making sure taxpayer money achieves what it’s meant to: supporting Australians.”
He says the long term benefits of reform would be significant. “Within a few years, the system could stabilise and strengthen. We’d see local providers thriving, improved quality of care, and billions of dollars staying in Australia rather than being shipped offshore.”
Townend frames the issue as a question of fairness and sovereignty. “Ultimately, this is about fairness, sustainability, and sovereignty. Australians expect their taxes to support local services, not fund the profits of overseas investors. The care economy should exist to care for Australians, not to generate foreign profits. This is a wake-up call for policymakers. The time to act is now.”
Spinal Life Australia is urging all political parties to take a firm position ahead of future reforms. The organisation says the sustainability of the care economy depends on keeping public funding circulating within the system, supporting local services and strengthening outcomes for the very people the system is designed to serve.
