Aged Care (Amount of Flexible Care Subsidy – Multi-Purpose Services) Determination 2012 (No. 1)

Administered by Department of Health, Disability and Ageing

Legislation au F2012L01426 Not in force Legislative Instrument

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EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

 

Issued by the authority of the Minister for Mental Health and Ageing

 

Aged Care Act 1997

 

Aged Care (Amount of Flexible Care Subsidy – Multi-Purpose Services) Determination 2012 (No. 1)

 

The Aged Care Act 1997 (the Act) provides for the regulation and 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 care recipients.

 

Multi-purpose Services are a form of flexible aged care under the Act.  A Multi-purpose Service (MPS) provides integrated health and aged care services for small rural and remote communities.  This allows services to exist in regions that could not support stand-alone hospitals or aged care homes.

 

Subsection 52-1(1) of the Act provides that the Minister for Ageing may determine, by legislative instrument, the amount of the flexible care subsidy or a method that must be used to work out the amount of flexible care subsidy. 

 

The purpose of the Aged Care (Amount of Flexible Care Subsidy – Multi-Purpose Services) Determination 2012 (No. 1) (the Determination) is to specify the method for working out the amount of flexible care subsidy payable for a day to an MPS, with rates effective from 1 July 2012.  This Determination also revokes Aged Care (Amount of Flexible Care Subsidy – Multi-Purpose Services) Determination 2011 (No. 1). 

 

The difference between the Determinations is that the daily amount of flexible care subsidy payable for an MPS has been increased in accordance with a well established formula based on the Consumer Price Index as a measure of the non-labour costs of providers, and the minimum wage decisions of Fair Work Australia as a measure of the non-productivity based movements in the wage costs of providers.  In addition, the Aged Care (Amount of Flexible Care Subsidy - Multi-Purpose Services) Determination 2012 (No. 1) corrects a rounding error in the calculation of the residential low care rate of MPS subsidy that benefited providers during 2011-12.

 

The total amount of flexible care subsidy payable to an MPS for a day comprises the amount payable for a day in respect of the MPS’s high, low and community care places, and the respite supplement equivalent amount.

 

The amount of subsidy payable to an MPS for high or low care places is based on:

  • a basic subsidy equivalent amount
  • a concessional resident equivalent amount
  • a viability supplement equivalent amount
  • for high care places only, an adjusted subsidy reduction amount (where appropriate).


The amount of subsidy payable to MPS for community care places is based on an additional daily amount if the MPS is 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 the 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.

 

Consultation

Routine indexation of the supplement 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.

 

This Determination commences on 1 July 2012.

 

The Determination is a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.

 

 

 


Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights

Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011

 

Aged Care (Amount of Flexible Care Subsidy – Multi-Purpose Services) Determination 2012 (No. 1)

This Legislative Instrument is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.

 

Overview of the Legislative Instrument

The purpose of the Aged Care (Amount of Flexible Care Subsidy – Multi-Purpose Services) Determination 2012 (No. 1) (the Determination) is to specify the method for working out the amount of flexible care subsidy payable for a day to a Multi-Purpose Service, with rates effective from 1 July 2012.  This Determination also revokes Aged Care (Amount of Flexible Care Subsidy – Multi-Purpose Services) Determination 2011 (No. 1). 

Human rights implications

This Legislative Instrument does not engage any of the applicable rights or freedoms.

Conclusion

This Legislative Instrument is compatible with human rights as it does not raise any human rights issues.

 

Mark Butler

Minister for Mental Health and Ageing

 

 

 

Overview

The Aged Care Act 1997 governs the regulation and funding of aged care services in Australia, establishing the framework within which flexible aged care services, including Multi-Purpose Services (MPS), can receive subsidies. The Aged Care (Amount of Flexible Care Subsidy – Multi-Purpose Services) Determination 2012 (No. 1) was enacted to address the need for updated subsidy rates for MPS, ensuring that these services, which provide integrated health and aged care for rural and remote communities, receive appropriate financial support. This Determination, issued by the Minister for Mental Health and Ageing, specifies the method for calculating the flexible care subsidy payable to MPS, with rates effective from 1 July 2012. The policy objective is to ensure that MPS can continue to provide essential services in areas that might otherwise lack adequate healthcare facilities, while also correcting previous calculation errors and aligning subsidy rates with economic indicators such as the Consumer Price Index and Fair Work Australia's wage decisions.

Scope and Application

The Aged Care Act 1997, supplemented by the Aged Care (Amount of Flexible Care Subsidy – Multi-Purpose Services) Determination 2012 (No. 1), governs the funding and regulation of aged care services in Australia, particularly focusing on Multi-Purpose Services (MPS) which integrate health and aged care for small rural and remote communities. The Act applies to entities approved to provide flexible aged care services, allowing them to receive flexible care subsidy payments for the care they provide to recipients. The Determination outlines the methodology for calculating the amount of flexible care subsidy payable to MPSs for a day, including adjustments based on the Consumer Price Index and Fair Work Australia decisions. The subsidy amount varies depending on the type of care provided (high, low, or community care) and the geographical location of the care recipient, with additional considerations for rural and remote areas based on the Accessibility/Remoteness Index of Australia (ARIA) score. The Determination revokes its 2011 predecessor and comes into effect from 1 July 2012, serving as a legislative instrument under the Legislative Instruments Act 2003. The instrument has been reviewed to ensure compatibility with human rights, concluding that it does not raise any human rights issues and is therefore compliant with the international instruments listed in the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.

Key Provisions

The Aged Care (Amount of Flexible Care Subsidy – Multi-Purpose Services) Determination 2012 (No. 1) (subparagraph 52-1(1)) provides a method for calculating the flexible care subsidy for Multi-Purpose Services (MPS) in aged care, effective from 1 July 2012. This Determination replaces the Aged Care (Amount of Flexible Care Subsidy – Multi-Purpose Services) Determination 2011 (No. 1). It specifies that the daily subsidy for MPS includes amounts for high care, low care, and community care places, as well as a respite supplement equivalent amount. The amounts are based on various components, such as the basic subsidy equivalent amount, concessional resident equivalent amount, and viability supplement equivalent amount. For high care places, an adjusted subsidy reduction amount may also apply. Additionally, MPS located in rural or remote areas with an Accessibility/Remoteness Index of Australia (ARIA) score of 3.52 or more may receive an additional daily amount, which increases with the ARIA score. Entities that provide Multi-Purpose Services under the Aged Care Act 1997 must adhere to the provisions outlined in the Aged Care (Amount of Flexible Care Subsidy – Multi-Purpose Services) Determination 2012 (No. 1). These entities are required to calculate the daily flexible care subsidy based on the specified method and components. They must ensure that their care services meet the eligibility criteria for the various subsidy components and accurately report the number of high care, low care, and community care places they provide. Moreover, providers must consider the ARIA score of the location where the care recipient resides when calculating any additional daily amount for rural or remote areas. The Determination does not explicitly outline specific offences, penalties, or consequences for breaches. However, non-compliance with the Aged Care Act 1997 and the Determination could potentially lead to investigations, audits, or other enforcement actions by the Department of Health or the Aged Care Complaints and Information Commission. Providers found to have miscalculated or misreported subsidy amounts could be required to repay any overclaimed subsidies, and may face reputational damage or other consequences. Additionally, persistent non-compliance may result in the provider losing their approval to offer aged care services under the Act.

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Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation at 26 August 2026. For the latest information on Australian Government law please go to https://www.legislation.gov.au.