Aged Australians no longer have to pay for personal care services, such as showering, eating, dressing, continence support, taking medication, and personal hygiene maintenance. These now all fall under clinical care services for Support at Home.
Before being reclassified, personal care services required between 5% to 50% co-contribution. The Australian government has allocated $1 billion to support this change. According to Sam Rae, the Minister for Aged Care and Seniors, the government is able to help older Australians in accessing more support, as financial barriers are removed.
This is a big step forward for the government but Mr Rae understands that “there’s more work to do.” They will continue to work with older people, as well as carers and providers to ensure dignified aged care is delivered.