EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Issued by the authority of the Minister for Ageing
Aged Care Act 1997
Accountability Amendment Principles 2008 (No. 1)
The Aged Care Act 1997 (the Act) provides for the funding of aged care services. Persons who are approved under the Act to provide residential aged care services (approved providers) can be eligible to receive residential care subsidy payments in respect of the care they provide to approved care recipients.
Subsection 96-1(1) of the Act allows the Minister to make Principles providing for various matters required or permitted by a Part or section of the Act.
One set of Principles made under the Act is the Accountability Principles 1997 (the Accountability Principles).
The purpose of the Accountability Amendment Principles 2008 (No. 1) (the Amending Principles) is detailed below. The Amending Principles are a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.
Accountability Amendment Principles 2008 (No. 1)
The Aged Care Amendment (2008 Measures No. 1) Act 2008 amended the Act and related legislation to simplify, and make fairer, the fees and charges paid by residents of aged care facilities as well as the subsidies paid by the Commonwealth Government for residents who cannot fully meet their own care and accommodation costs.
Some more minor changes to the legislation were also made to improve consistency and clarity, address unintended consequences of the operation of the legislation, and streamline the administration of the legislation. One of these minor amendments was the inclusion of a requirement that approved providers of aged care must notify the Secretary of the Department of Health and Ageing of each care recipient who enters an aged care service (other than for respite care), on or after 20 March 2008. The purpose of these Amending Principles is to prescribe a time period for such notification.
Consultation
The Department of Health and Ageing undertook extensive consultation on the policy that is implemented through the Aged Care Amendment (2008 Measures No. 1) Act 2008 which amends the Act. These Amending Principles flow from these amendments.
Details of the amendments to the Principles are listed at Attachment A.
ATTACHMENT A
NOTES ON CLAUSES
Clause 1 states that the name of the amending Principles is the Accountability Amendment Principles 2008 (No. 1).
Clause 2 states that the Principles commence on 20 March 2008.
Clause 3 states that Schedule 1 amends the Accountability Principles.
Schedule 1 Amendments
Item 1
Currently Part 3 of the Accountability Principles sets out circumstances in which information must be given to the Minister (and the heading of the Part is “Information to be given to Minister”).
As item 3 amends Part 3 to insert a new requirement in relation to the giving of information to the Secretary, Item 1 amends the heading of Part 3 to read “Information to be given to Minister or Secretary”.
Item 2
This item amends section 1.14 (which describes the purpose of the Part) in recognition of the expanded purpose of the Part resulting from the inclusion of new section 1.16A (refer Item 3 below).
Item 3
Currently, approved providers lodge ‘Resident Entry Records’ with the Department of Health and Ageing in relation to care recipients. These records tell the Department important information about care recipients who have entered residential care services, and the records also assist in the proper payment of supplements to approved providers.
The Aged Care Amendment (2008 Measures No. 1) Act 2008 inserted a new section (section 63-1B) into the Act to make this current practice mandatory.
Section 63-1B of the Act provides that it is the responsibility of an approved provider to notify the Secretary of each care recipient who enters (other than for respite care), on or after 20 March 2008, a residential care service operated by the approved provider. The notification must be made in the form approved by the Secretary and within the period specified in the Accountability Principles.
This item of the Amending Principles inserts a new section (section 1.16A) into the Accountability Principles providing that the period within which an approved provider must notify the Secretary about entry of a care recipient into a residential aged care service is 28 days.