The sector welcomes the delay, saying the government’s decision is a positive step that allows providers and policy makers time to get their ducks in a row.
The federal government has admitted the original 1 July start date for the new Aged Care Act was unobtainable, announcing today that commencement will be delayed until 1 November 2025.
“We have received advice from the sector and experts that more time will improve the delivery of these reforms and minimise disruption,” said the announcement from Mark Butler, the minister for health and ageing, and Sam Rae, the new minister for aged care and seniors.
“This will allow more time for aged care providers to prepare their clients, support their workers and get their systems ready for the changes.
“It will also give us more time to finalise key operational and digital processes, and for Parliament to consider supporting legislation that will enable the new Act to operate effectively.”
For months the sector has been warning that 1 July was too soon to allow aged care providers to upgrade systems, train staff and educate clients about the changes to the system.
“Partly due to the later-than-expected passage of the Aged Care Act, much of the detail around how the new program will work is incomplete or in draft,” said Jason Kara, CEO of Catholic Health Australia, the country’s largest non-government, not-for-profit aged care provider.
“Requiring providers and residents to sign agreements without key information such as co-contribution amounts and transitional rules would have risked the discontinuation of care, or care being provided without a legal service agreement, posing legal, financial and regulatory risks.”
Mr Kara said the decision to delay was a good one.
“This delay is needed to ensure a smooth transition that avoids unintended negative consequences,” he said.
“Delaying the transition will allow older Australians to seek advice and make informed decisions before signing a new agreement and support providers to continue delivering high quality care throughout this process.
“Reform of this magnitude and importance should not be rushed. We welcome this announcement today and thank the government [and the ministers] for their constructive engagement.”
The Aged Care Act, which was passed in November 2024, introduces a new fee structure for aged care residents and enshrines new legal rights for aged care recipients. It will impose a means-tested resident fee of just over $100 a day, named the “non-clinical care” fee to reflect its purpose of funding food and other amenities.
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Advocacy group Ageing Australia also congratulated the government on making the decision to delay.
“This decision is the result of months of intense discussions and calls for practical timelines for the sector,” said CEO Tom Symondson.
“We know that rushed reforms would put levels of care at risk for older people.
“We applaud the government for listening to the concerns of the aged care sector and putting the needs of older Australians first.
“The simple truth is we’re not ready to introduce all the sweeping reforms by 1 July.
“Providers have been working around the clock to ensure a smooth transition, but we just haven’t received all the information we need in order to proceed.
“The additional time will give us the critical space we need to finalise agreements, systems and processes.
“This is a win for the 1.4 million older Australians who rely on aged care. We need to do this reform once and do it right. We hope this extension will help us get closer to that goal.”
The Department of Health, Disability and Ageing said today that the Support at Home program, which helps older people to “remain healthy, active and socially connected to their community”, will commence with the new Act on 1 November.
“Until then, the Commonwealth Home Support Program, Short-Term Restorative Care Program and Home Care Packages Program will continue to support older Australians who wish to continue living at home,” said the announcement.
Mr Butler was accentuating the positives about the delay.
“We’ve had to compress really a decade of reform into three or four years,” he said at a press conference this morning.
“We delivered on that reform … in the first three years. And … we’re committed to delivering on the implementation of the Aged Care Act that will expand aged care support to hundreds of thousands of additional older Australians as well as lifting the quality and the range of aged care services that they can rely upon in their final years of life.
“The Albanese government has made no secret of the fact that this is an incredibly ambitious reform,” he said.
“These are once-in-a-generation reforms, which put older Australians at the centre of aged care.
“We want to make sure that all operational, digital and legislative pieces are in place before the rollout starts.
“This brief deferral allows providers to train their staff and have conversations with their clients, get their IT systems ready and prepare operations for an orderly transition.”
The Older Persons Advocacy Network and COTA were claiming responsibility for the delay today, saying they had written to the minister last week.
“Last week COTA and OPAN wrote to the Government to advise that it’s become clear that a time-limited delay to the Act … was necessary to avoid confusion and make sure older people and their families are informed about how the new system will work,” said COTA’s official response to the delay.
“We welcome the federal government’s response to our call for a new commencement date for the Aged Care Act,” said COTA’s CEO Patricia Sparrow.
“We wanted a 1 July start date so people didn’t have to wait any longer for their rights than they already have, but ultimately, we concluded it’s far more important to get it right and ensure that older people understand what will happen for them.”
OPAN said today that it “reluctantly” supported the decision to delay.
“Until now, OPAN has been steadfast in its call for the Act to be implemented, as promised, on 1 July 2025, because older people can’t get the aged care they need without it,” said CEO Craig Gear.
“However, over the past weeks, it has become increasingly apparent that, while the macro design of the reform is solid, older people don’t have the necessary information to make informed choices at an individual level, particularly around the new Support at Home program.
“We are also concerned that the appropriate systems aren’t yet in place to ensure continuity of care and services for older people during the transition.
“It is for these reasons OPAN reluctantly supports the delay.”
OPAN also called for the release of a minimum 20,000 additional home care packages during the four-month delay to reduce the current 83,000 people waiting up to 11 months to receive the appropriate level of home care.
“Inadequate in-home care support pushes older people prematurely into residential aged care,” Mr Gear said, who also said the additional time must be used to fast-track the rights-based legislation.
“This is not the time to take our foot off the pedal.
“Older people have been waiting years for an Act that enshrines their rights in legislation. This delay risks pushing out the timeline for them to receive more timely and rights focused aged care.
“We need to use this four-month window to urgently address outstanding issues, which include accessible hardship provisions for those with limited means, and roadblocks in the single assessment system which are exacerbating waiting times for in-home aged care.
“Older people must also be provided with the level of detail they need to make informed choices and give their informed consent.”