It's more than five years since our Four Corners series Who Cares? revealed how successive governments and aged care providers ignored shocking neglect, abuse and substandard conditions in Australia's nursing homes for decades.
The new laws are being touted as "once in a generation" reforms that give older people and their families new rights and put them at the centre of policy.A taskforce reviewing funding for aged care has rejected the idea of a tax levy to cover the sector's costs, instead suggesting aged care payments be based on personal wealth.
COTA said it "uses a diverse range of means — publicly and through direct advocacy" to lobby government. OPAN said "any suggestion that OPAN has not been an independent and impartial advocate is misleading and inaccurate".However, neither organisation was on hand when the government released its far-reaching taskforce report into funding reforms last month which recommended a massive change to policy, including that self-funded retirees pay extra in order to fund the sector.
"We don’t want a user-pays system creating two tiers and yet still not have an aged care system, where the minimum level of care is not certain and even basic services might need to be paid for." The royal commission's first and most important recommendation was to create a new Aged Care Act with a charter of rights, giving people the right to high quality care, to live without abuse and neglect, and to be treated with dignity and respect.
That plan was abandoned after an uproar from health groups about the potential for conflicts of interest, including the AMA which said the current system works well because state government assessors have the "necessary medical expertise and are independent of aged care providers, who should never be allowed to assess health needs as well as recommend and supply services".
It also seems that overturning any decision made by the "computer program" will be difficult, with the act stating any change would only occur if the "System Governor" "is satisfied that the decision made by the operation of the computer program is incorrect." At the moment, people on a home care package choose the services they want and have them delivered directly to them. In some cases, the retirement village is also their home care provider.
"The federal government can make cash flow into villages but it could be accompanied by severe regulation and compliance. The sector has urgent work to do to make its case."