The Minister announced that an Aged Care Taskforce (Taskforce) has been established by the Commonwealth Government to address the critical issue of aged care funding. She noted that the Taskforce aims to make the aged care system 'equitable and sustainable into the future'. The Minister also highlighted the release of an Aged Care Reform Activity Roadmap (Roadmap), setting out the reform agenda through to July 2025.

We provide a high-level summary of the Minister's key comments below.

Aged Care Taskforce

A Taskforce will be established and will focus on identifying an equitable and sustainable funding model and is part of a 'seismic shift' within the aged care sector, moving from 'provider-focused' to 'person focused' and from 'funding focused' to 'care focused'. The Minister acknowledged the desire of older Australians for a different model and standard of care, and signalled a shift towards greater 'co-design, support at home, and policy settings that allow innovative models to be viable investments'. This is detailed in the Terms of Reference of the Taskforce.

The Minister was not prepared to be drawn on her views as to the ultimate funding model however, stated that the Taskforce will review and consider a variety of options, including those proposed by the Aged Care Royal Commission. This might include reviewing the means test threshold for family homes or a combination of measures, such as a levy and higher financial contributions from consumers.

The Taskforce will be chaired by the Minister and will include some notable experts such as Nigel Ray, formerly from the IMF and Commonwealth Treasury and Grant Corderoy from StewartBrown. It will consist of 13 members, as well as union representatives. The Taskforce will aim to reach consensus on final recommendations to Government, providing an Interim Report in October 2023 and a Final Report in December 2023.

New Aged Care Act

The Minister suggested that the existing Aged Care Act 'focuses on how providers run services' and that in doing this 'has lost sight of the rights of old people'. The Minister spoke of the 'byzantine' nature of the aged care system and suggested that it must be 'modernised' in order to 'lift the standard of care for older people in a tangible way'. In discussing the issues with the existing legislation, the Minister provided some insight into the overarching policy that will underpin the new Aged Care Act. It will take 'a person-centred approach, with a focus on the rights of older people who are accessing aged care services'. She noted that 'taking a rights-based approach will ensure older people are at the centre of the aged care system.'

Considering these comments, and the reference to the new Aged Care Act being 'rights based' in the Roadmap discussed below, it seems likely that the regulatory regime created by the new Aged Care Act will be substantially different to that under the current legislation, with a real focus on care and services being consumer directed and person focused. It is notable that the National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013 (Cth) is often described as being 'rights based' legislation, and that a number of the regulatory reforms being proposed appear to be modelled on the NDIS framework.

Aged Care Reform Activity Roadmap

The Roadmap provides an overview of upcoming major reform activities in the aged care sector.

Some of the key milestones included in the Roadmap which are scheduled between now and 1 July 2025 are as follows:

• December 2023 – release of an Exposure Draft Bill for a New Rights Based Aged Care Act.
• June 2024 – residential aged care places assigned to people rather than providers.
• July 2024 – passage of a New Rights Based Aged Care Act and commencement of a new Regulatory model, Quality Standards, Commonwealth Home Support Program, National Worker Screening and National Aged Care Design Principles and Guidelines.
• July 2025 – commencement of an In-Home Aged Care Program.

Following the Minister's address, the sector now has a clear roadmap for some significant reforms, including when the new Act is planned to commence, and significant changes to both residential and home care are scheduled to take place. With an exposure draft of the new Act due by the end of the year, alongside the report from the Taskforce setting out potential funding mechanisms for the Government to consider, by the end of the year, we expect to have much greater clarity on what the aged care sector will look like, post-reforms.

If you would like to discuss this update, or if we are able to assist in any way, please do not hesitate to get in touch.