Aged Care Minister Anika Wells has announced a new Aged Care Taskforce to help establish the best care model in a new equitable and sustainable Aged Care Act.
In a speech to the National Press Club Australia on Wednesday, Minister Wells presented the taskforce as a part of the Government’s plan to address the unanswered questions raised by the Commission’s Final Report and to replace the outdated legislation of the current Act.
The taskforce will comprise different industry experts, economists and union representation to deliberate and decide the best way for an “ambitious” aged care system for all involved, in line with recommendations from the Commission and Government plans outlined in the last month’s Budget.
In just a decade, there will be more people over 65 in Australia than under 18, and Minister Wells wants to see the new Act revolve around older people and the quality of care they receive instead of focusing on how providers are funded.
She touched on the $2.5 billion financial cut to the sector in 2017, chronic workforce shortages, and operating costs which saw providers lose more than $8 a day per bed in 2020.
“We must act now. The Baby Boomers are coming,” she said.
“We have already heard the next generation of people entering aged care are going to want a different model and standard of care than those before them.
Chaired by Minister Wells, the taskforce will deliberate monthly and deliver a draft recommendation report by October of this year, with the final being handed to the Government in December.
Revealing taskforce members, expertise in economics, finance, public policy, ageing and aged care, First Nations, consumer advocacy and provider advocacy have been included as well as a strong union presence to represent industry workers.
Members include Council on the Ageing’s Patricia Sparrow, former National Seniors Chief Executive Officer John McCallum, Think Forward’s lead economist Thomas Walker and Australian Aged & Community Care Providers Association’s Tom Symondson.
Encouraged by the awarded 15% pay rise for 250,000 nurses and aged care workers from July 1, the sector still needs to attract and keep more workers, particularly in home care settings.
More Australians are choosing to age and receive aged care services at home for as long as possible, increasing the need for strengthened care at home with sufficient workers.
“We are not taking a patch-and-paint approach to this process,” Minister Wells said.
“We need co-design, support at home, and policy settings that allow innovative models to be viable investments.”
Dear Ms Wells
I do hope you have some registered nurses and other aged care staff on your task force.
One idea that could solve a staff shortage immediately is to re-instate all the staff who were terminated 2 years ago for not wishing to get the jab. They could start work tomorrow— thousands of them.
An in-depth review of aged care undoubtedly will need to be done to enable appropriate forward planning for the increased demand for in-home and residential care ove rthe coming years.
However, I am concerned that any significant increases in my contributions towards aged care accommodation costs will stretch my financial resources beyond what i am able to afford to remain in residential care. My outgoings of approx. $6,000 per month on top of the returnable deposit of $850,000 were arranged after the means testing process and was done in the belief the existing formula used by the Australian government would not change.
God help us all aged care can’t cope now
It’s broken and going down hill fast
What we do know is that most boomers will not want to pay for their care, they have been way too busy flattering and spoiling themselves to have bothered to make any preparations for old age..and most of them think that they “deserve” or are owed a different care than their parents have gotten but that is not the case at all.
Against every obstacle nursing homes have continued to deliver excellent care for the vast majority of residents, you certainly can’t say the same for home care and NDIS failures.