Government announces $910 million funding boost for aged care

In a joint media release on March 18th 2016, Minister for Health, the Hon. Sussan Ley MP and Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care, the Hon Ken Wyatt AM, MP announced $910 million in funding to create 17,385 new aged care places in Australia. 

The funding came as the Minister for Health announced the results of the 2015 Aged Care Approvals Round (ACAR) and new arrangements for the 2016 ACAR. The Minister said the funding would benefit thousands of older Australians.

"These new home care places help our elderly remain in their homes and receive the care they need," the Minister said. " This is particularly important for anyone with high-level needs." 

Of the 17,385 new places, 10,940 include new residential places worth an estimated $678.3 million and 6,445 new home care places, worth an estimated $232.4 million.

"The Turnbull Government is also investing an additional $67 million in capital grants across Australia to help approved providers establish new services or upgrade existing facilities."

This will be the last ACAR to provide home care places. From February 2017 funding will follow the consumer, not the provider. This allows people to choose the care which suits their individual needs and then direct funding to the provider of their choice. 

"Australians want greater choice and control over the care they receive and the changes to home care we've created do exactly that," Minister Wyatt said. 

For more information in the funding announcement and the results of the 2015 ACAR, please click here. 

Mike Cullen has recently returned to Akolade after a period as the conference producer for one of Australia's leading economic think tanks. Mike began working in the conference industry in 2007 after looking for a career change from the high pressured world of inbound customer service.

Mike has worked for some of the most well-known conference and media companies in the B2B space and in his spare time is working on his first novel in a planned Epic Fantasy trilogy. Mike’s first published work will be the short story Seeds of Eden, in the Sproutlings Anthology scheduled for release in March 2016.