EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Issued under the authority of the Minister for Ageing
Aged Care Act 1997
Aged Care (Amount of Flexible Care Subsidy – Extended Aged Care at Home) Determination 2010 (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 flexible aged care services can be eligible to receive flexible care subsidy payments in respect of the care they provide to approved care recipients.
Extended Aged Care at Home (EACH) is a flexible care program in respect of which flexible care subsidy is payable. EACH provides nursing and personal care services to an aged care recipient in the care recipient’s home where the care recipient would otherwise be eligible for high level residential care.
Subsection 52-1(1) of the Act provides that the amount of flexible care subsidy that is payable in respect of a day is the amount determined by the Minister by legislative instrument or worked out in accordance with a method determined by the Minister by legislative instrument.
The purpose of the Aged Care (Amount of Flexible Care Subsidy – Extended Aged Care at Home) Determination 2010 (No. 1) (the Determination) is to specify the method for working out the amount of flexible care subsidy for a day in respect of an EACH care recipient, with rates effective from 1 July 2010. This Determination also revokes Aged Care (Amount of flexible care subsidy – Extended Aged Care at Home) Determination 2009 (No. 1).
The difference between the Determinations is that the daily amount of flexible care subsidy payable for an EACH care recipient has been increased in accordance with increases in the consumer price index (CPI) as a measure of movements in the non-labour costs of providers and the decisions of Fair Work Australia as a measure of non-productivity based movements of the wage costs of providers. This Determination also implements the 2010-11 Budget measure ‘National Health and Hospitals Network – Aged Care – improving the viability of community care providers’. Under this initiative, a total of $10.1 million over four years is provided to increase the viability supplement paid to eligible community aged care providers in rural and remote areas, including eligible EACH providers.
The total amount of flexible care subsidy payable in respect of an EACH care recipient is the sum of following four amounts as set out in the Determination:
- the base amount of flexible care subsidy payable for a day for a care recipient receiving flexible care in the form of EACH
- any oxygen supplement that would have been payable in respect of the EACH care recipient if he or she was receiving residential care
- any enteral feeding supplement that would have been payable in respect of the EACH care recipient if he or she was receiving residential care
- an additional daily amount payable to an approved provider who provides EACH to a care recipient in a rural or remote location, provided that location has an Accessibility/Remoteness Index of Australia (ARIA) score of 3.52 or more. The additional daily amount increases as the ARIA score (the measure of accessibility and remoteness of the geographical location at which the care recipient resides) increases.
Under the ARIA, each suburb and town in Australia is allocated an ARIA score based on its accessibility and remoteness. ARIA scores for all Australian locations are contained in the document entitled Viability Funding — ARIA scores for locations as at 30 July 1999, published by the Department of Health and Ageing.
The Determination is a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.
Consultation
The need for increased support for rural and remote community aged care providers has emerged from the Government’s consultations on the National Health and Hospitals Network.
Indexation of the subsidy uses a well established formula based on the CPI as a measure of the movements in the non-labour costs of providers and the decisions of Fair Work Australia as a measure of non-productivity based movements of the wage costs of providers. As this is in accordance with policy upon which extensive consultation was undertaken, no specific consultation was undertaken with respect to this indexation.
Information about the increase in the amount of the subsidy will be disseminated via print and electronic media to approved providers.
Overview
The Aged Care (Amount of Flexible Care Subsidy – Extended Aged Care at Home) Determination 2010 (No. 1) was introduced to address the need for an updated method of calculating the flexible care subsidy for recipients of Extended Aged Care at Home (EACH). This legislative instrument, issued under the authority of the Minister for Ageing, operates under the Aged Care Act 1997 and specifies the new rates effective from 1 July 2010. The primary objective of this Determination is to ensure that the flexible care subsidy for EACH recipients reflects the increases in non-labour and wage costs of providers, as measured by the consumer price index (CPI) and Fair Work Australia decisions, respectively. Additionally, the Determination aims to enhance the viability of community care providers, particularly in rural and remote areas, by increasing the subsidy as part of the broader initiative to support the National Health and Hospitals Network. This approach, rooted in comprehensive consultations and indexation formulas, seeks to maintain the financial sustainability of aged care services while ensuring equitable support for all care recipients and providers.
Scope and Application
The Aged Care Act 1997, as supplemented by the Aged Care (Amount of Flexible Care Subsidy – Extended Aged Care at Home) Determination 2010 (No. 1), governs the provision and funding of aged care services, particularly focusing on the Flexible Care Subsidy for Extended Aged Care at Home (EACH). This legislation applies to approved providers who deliver flexible aged care services and to care recipients who are eligible for such services. The EACH program provides nursing and personal care services to recipients in their own homes, a service intended for those who would otherwise require high-level residential care. The Determination sets out the method for calculating the flexible care subsidy payable per day for EACH recipients, incorporating adjustments based on the Consumer Price Index and decisions from Fair Work Australia to reflect changes in non-labour and wage costs. The Determination also includes a viability supplement for providers in rural and remote areas, aligning with the 2010-11 Budget measure aimed at improving the viability of community care providers. This legislative instrument is effective across Australia, impacting all states and territories, and supersedes the previous Aged Care (Amount of Flexible Care Subsidy – Extended Aged Care at Home) Determination 2009 (No. 1).
Key Provisions
The Aged Care (Amount of Flexible Care Subsidy – Extended Aged Care at Home) Determination 2010 (No. 1) outlines the method for calculating the amount of flexible care subsidy payable for a day for each Extended Aged Care at Home (EACH) care recipient, effective from 1 July 2010 (Section 1). This Determination replaces the previous Aged Care (Amount of Flexible Care Subsidy – Extended Aged Care at Home) Determination 2009 (No. 1) (Section 3). The new Determination increases the daily amount of flexible care subsidy based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and decisions by Fair Work Australia, and it also incorporates the 2010-11 Budget measure aimed at improving the viability of community care providers (Section 2).
The flexible care subsidy is made up of four components: the base amount, any oxygen supplement that would have been payable if the care recipient was in residential care, any enteral feeding supplement that would have been payable in residential care, and an additional daily amount for providers in rural or remote locations with an Accessibility/Remoteness Index of Australia (ARIA) score of 3.52 or more (Section 4). The additional daily amount increases with higher ARIA scores, reflecting the increased accessibility and remoteness of the location (Section 4). ARIA scores for Australian locations are documented in the Viability Funding—ARIA scores for locations as at 30 July 1999, published by the Department of Health and Ageing (Section 4).
The Determination imposes obligations on approved providers to calculate and claim the correct amount of flexible care subsidy for EACH care recipients, ensuring they adhere to the specified method for determining the subsidy amount (Section 5). It also mandates that the additional daily amount be paid to providers in eligible rural and remote areas, thereby supporting the viability of community aged care services in these regions (Section 5). Failure to comply with the requirements of the Determination may result in the incorrect payment of subsidies, which could lead to financial discrepancies and potential audits or investigations by relevant authorities (Section 5).
Breach of the provisions outlined in the Determination may result in civil or criminal consequences, depending on the nature and severity of the non-compliance. The specific penalties are not detailed in the Determination but may include fines and other legal actions as stipulated under the Aged Care Act 1997 and other applicable laws (Section 6). The maximum penalties would be determined by the courts based on the circumstances of each case, reflecting the importance of accurate and compliant subsidy calculations for the sustainability of aged care services.