Catholic Health Australia expressed support for the passage of the Aged Care Act during its appearance before the Senate Standing Committee on Community Affairs on Friday.
CHA policy directors Laura Haylen and Alex Lynch appeared before the committee to outline the views of the Catholic aged care sector, representing over 350 aged care facilities and 20 per cent of the home care market.
The new Act delivers on the key recommendations of the royal commission and lays the foundations for a higher quality and sustainable aged care sector for all Australians, whether they live in a city, regional town or rural area.
It will ensure aged care providers can move to a sustainable footing and start to look at areas of need in our community to expand, particularly for marginalised and vulnerable people.
CHA suggested some amendments to further improve the Act.
These include changes to the Code of Conduct penalties, whistleblower protections, and the scope of responsible persons associated with statutory duties.
“The new Act is essential to address the recommendations of the royal commission and lays the foundation for a better quality and more sustainable aged care system that older Australians deserve,” Ms Haylen, CHA’s director of aged care policy, said.
“We support the Government’s reform agenda and strongly back the passage of this Bill – but we believe certain provisions could be enhanced to better protect aged care providers and the older Australians they serve.”
CHA also called for a year-long delay to the implementation of the Support at Home program to ensure it can be carried out effectively.
“The Support at Home program is a much-needed reform and will be transformational for the aged care system in supporting older Australians to age in place – but we are concerned that insufficient time has been allowed for the amount of work that will be needed to implement this once-in-a-generation reform,” Mr Lynch, CHA’s public health and in-home support policy director, said.
CHA said it was committed to working with the Government, the Department of Health and Aged Care, aged care residents and other key sector stakeholders to ensure the reforms deliver the best outcomes for older Australians and aged care providers alike.
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Catholic Health Australia supports Aged Care Act and suggests improvements (CHA)
