Guidance Framework for level 4 Home Care Package is for those who have:
Note:
'client needs and the extent to which they are being met through current formal/informal support arrangements when determining recommendation for Home Care Package level 1 to 4'. This is Very relevant as a client/consumer may not be considered a 'high priority' if they have existing care arrangements in place via family or private services, and so would appear to be managing. Sustainability of carer arrangements is an important factor in keeping someone at home long term, and wherever possible respite services should be planned and regular. It is also important to note that CHSP services can be accessed by Home Care Package for respite when there is a need for the relief of carer stress or in times of crisis.
Preparing for change in home care models. Strategies for Success with Lorraine Poulos. Contact [email protected]
In Community Care Review - Spring 2018.
Many thanks for this well written article.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Questions for carers to ask the team caring for your loved one
Some of the questions found here may not be relevant to the stage of care of your friend or family member. But it is always good to clarify and ask any questions of the team caring for your loved one that you may have. No question is ever a wrong question, and your health care provider will always aim to answer all the questions you may have.
https://palliativecare.org.au/resources/questions-for-carers-to-ask-the-team-caring-for-your-loved-one
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
What Is A Home-Care Package?
Home-care packages are care and support services that are subsidised by the Federal Government, with the aim of keeping people living independently at home for as long as possible.
Some Services Covered By Home-Care Packages May Surprise You!
04 February 2019
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
The government has released a new data table revealing the median cost of common home care services across Australia, which it hopes will act as a carrot to improve service offerings and a stick against unjustified charges.
Richard Colbeck
Older Australians and their families will also be able to get an idea of standard pricing to help them make decisions about whether a provider’s prices are fair, says aged care services minister Richard Colbeck.
The table shows median prices for
The changes to how we pay home care subsidies and supplements to providers will occur in 2 phases. Instead of paying the total in advance, we will pay in arrears for services delivered. We will hold unspent funds for care recipients. This is in line with other Government-funded programs.
Study unpacks experiences of home care packages
By Judy Skatssoon on February 5, 2020 in Community Care Review
Home care recipients have told researchers they sometimes have to fight to get their provider to deliver services they are due, describing it as “a battle” and “like pulling teeth”. Dr Sarah Russell
The government-commissioned study published in the Australasian Journal on Ageing interviewed 37 Home Care Package (HCP) recipients between September and November 2018. Participants were asked a series of questions relating to their degree of satisfaction with their HCP, including how they went about getting their services, how they identified providers, whether services were meeting their needs and about the staff who came to their home.
It builds on an earlier study released last year.
The current research, Consumer experiences of home care packages, says tighter regulation of providers, attention to fees and minimal standards of training would result in more positive consumer experiences.
https://www.australianageingagenda.com.au/2020/02/05/study-unpacks-experiences-of-home-care-packages/
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
Home Care Package Calculation of your cost of care form (SA456)
Use this form to give us your income details. We’ll use these details to assess how much you need to pay for a Home Care Package.
You only need to complete this form if you don’t get a means tested income support payment from the Department of Human Services.
18 July 2019
New Aged care means assessment forms
The Department of Human Services (DHS) has released the new Aged Care Calculation of your cost of care (SA486) digital form. Your clients can fill it in online, print and sign it and send it to DHS with their supporting documents. The digital form uses dynamic questions tailored to the customers’ individual circumstances.
For clients who would prefer to use our simplified paper forms, they are as follows:
These forms are all available on the DHS website. Tips on how to download the digital form can be found here.
Aged care means tests: https://www.humanservices.gov.au/individuals/services/aged-care-means-tests
We assess your financial details to work out how much you need to pay towards aged care.
Customers commencing a Home Care Package don’t need to fill in a form if they get a means tested income support payment from Centrelink or DVA.
Customers entering Residential Care don’t need to fill in a form if they:
It is important to make sure their income and assets are up to date when they enter into care to ensure their assessment can be completed automatically. They can do this by accessing their Centrelink online account or by calling Centrelink on 132 300or DVA on 1800 555 254.
Department of Health
13 August 2019
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Self Service
You can do most of your Centrelink, Medicare and Child Support business using our Express Plus mobile apps, online accounts or phone self service.
Soon myGov will be the only way you can access your Centrelink online account. Start using myGov now.
Login to My Aged Care using myGov
My Aged Care client record
When you call My Aged Care, our contact centre staff will ask you a number of questions to help us understand your needs. The contact centre will also seek your consent to create a personalised client record which will hold information on your needs and any services put in place. The record will mean you won’t have to retell your story on multiple occasions to the contact centre, assessors and service providers.
If you have a client record with My Aged Care you can access your client record using myGov. The client record allows you to:
For more information, please read the My Aged Care Client Portal User Guide (PDF, 3.2Mb).
AGED CARE QUALITY AND SAFETY COMMISSION
Update on quality standards
Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission 1800 550 552 regarding a Commonwealth-subsidised residential or home-based aged care service
https://www.agedcarequality.gov.au/
Minister Wyatt announced that the Complaints Commissioner and the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency will form part of the New Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission in January 2019. "I am confident the new Commission will better target sub-standard care. It will be a central point to identify failures, highlights quality concerns and have them rectified,” he says.
The Commission replaces the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency and the Aged Care Complaints Commissioner. Combining these functions into one independent agency strengthens the focus on consumers, streamlines regulation, supports better engagement with consumers and providers, and promotes transparency.
The new Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission began on January 1st, 2019.
Who do the Act and Rules apply to?
What changes can services and providers expect?
The new Rules look quite different due to the combined functions under the Act. However, while the Rules have combined a number of previously separate legislative instruments, the core processes are preserved.
Factsheets & FAQs
Aged Care - Flexible
Aged Care – Home and Community
Aged Care – Residential
Assessing services
26 June 2019
It will have a budget of almost $300 million over four years, employing dozens of additional senior compliance officers. The new Commission will immediately absorb the roles of the current Aged Care Complaints Commissioner and the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency and, from January 2020, also take over the Department of Health's aged-care compliance responsibilities.
Key Changes under the new Commission Act and Rules.
The new commissioners of the Royal Commission in to Aged Care Quality and Safety has written to the nation’s top 100 aged care operators, asking them to self-report on details of their operations. The request for information is the first step in the Royal Commission’s information gathering process. The deadline for providing information is January. Smaller operators will also be contacted, and will be given a later deadline.
The letters mark what will be a huge information-gathering process involving every aged care facility in Australia, and also begins a process of review for all operators of their own individual systems and processes.
26 June 2019
= - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = -
https://www.myagedcare.gov.au/view-your-my-aged-care-client-record
Self service - You can do most of your Centrelink, Medicare and Child Support business using our Express Plus mobile apps, online accounts or phone self service.
The types of services provided under a Home Care Package will depend on YOUR needs.
Your home care provider will co-ordinate care and services to support you at home.
YOU get to decide what YOU Want.
Anything from paying for your own walker, wheelchair, a ramp at the front door, air conditioner, washing machine... to having someone accompany you on a family visit... YOUR Choice... If your Provider cannot/or is unwilling to do what YOU want, they can 'broker it out' to someone else... OR, now that we are in a Consumer Directed Control world, YOU can change your Provider.
YOU Choose! It's all about YOU now. How do you want to live Your Life?
Since 1 July 2019 home care providers will need to publish their prices in a new standardised home care pricing Schedule on the My Aged Care website. This transition to the new pricing structure may be an opportune time to analyse their current pricing policies and determine if they (the Provider) need to change their prices.
The Schedule will provide information on the common services and costs under a home care package.
This will better support senior Australians to understand and compare home care pricing information, and make a more informed decision about which provider is best placed to deliver your care.
01 July 2019
WHAT TO DO...
STEP 1: https://www.myagedcare.gov.au/find-a-provider
STEP 2: Click on "Help at Home"
STEP 3: Select your Suburb
STEP 4: Click on "Home Support Services" to get a list of Providers
OR “Home Care Package” Level 1, 2, 3 or 4
You can then click on the Providers name for their details
OR Just click on COMPARE – up to 3 at a time
and COMPARE ONE PROVIDER $ AGAINST ANOTHER... Just scroll down.
You are looking at:-
Case Management - approximate number of hours per fortnight
Price for Common Services - shown as $ per hour
Other costs:
It's quite an Eye-opener!!!
= - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - =
https://www.australianageingagenda.com.au/2018/04/12/key-considerations-when-negotiating-cdc-package-spending/
The Department of Health says the types of care and services provided under a home care package will depend on the person’s assessed care needs.
A package should help older people to stay at home, provide tailored services and cover a person’s care and safety needs.
If a package is used to contribute towards the cost of items within a consumer’s home, the impact on a person’s individual budget, capacity to deliver other care and services and responsibility for any maintenance should be considered, the department says.
-------
What is the Aged Care Assessment (ACAT) Team?
The ACAT assess people’s eligibility for Home Care Packages and other residential care services. They are professional health and community care clinicians who visit you at home to assess your needs. They do a comprehensive assessment for your eligibility for a Home Care Package, residential respite care or permanent residential care.
Comprehensive Assessment (ACAT only)
A Comprehensive Assessment, undertaken by the ACATs, builds on the information collected in the contact centre screening and Home Support Assessment (if applicable) and in a suitable face-to-face context (preferably in the client’s usual accommodation setting) to determine a client’s eligibility for care types under the Act. It encompasses the same client information as the Home Support Assessment at a deeper level.
Types of Assessment: You are looking at page 10.
https://agedcare.health.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/06_2018/my-aged-care-assessment-manual-june-2018-v1-1.pdf
The assessor will comprehensively assess:
The assessor and client will work together to establish a support plan that reflects the client’s strengths and abilities, areas of difficulty, and the support that will best meet their needs and goals. This will include the consideration of formal and informal services as well as reablement and/or restorative pathways.
Where a care type under the Act is identified as the most appropriate type of support to meet the client’s needs, and the client meets the eligibility criteria, the assessor will make a recommendation for approval. A client may be approved for a Home Care Package, Residential Care, Residential Respite Care or Flexible Care (Transition Care Program [TCP] or Short-Term Restorative Care [STRC]). Clients may also be referred to CHSP services where appropriate.
https://www.myagedcare.gov.au/manage-your-home-care-package-services
WHAT KINDS OF ASSISTANCE CAN I HAVE? Whatever YOU want... You are not limited by what your Provider can actually provide. If you want something different, they can 'broker' it out on your behalf.
In More Depth: CDC means YOUR Choice
and
Do be aware that since 27 February 2017, the package (Level 1, 2, 3 or 4) goes to YOU. You choose your own Provider and the Government then gives them the $ to spend on what YOU Want. Do be aware that some Providers are charging joining, upgrade or exit fees for their in home health and wellbeing services. This is Not Mandatory, and should any Provider place these restrictions in your New Home Care Agreement, Do NOT sign it. You do NOT have to pay for these. Only those things which YOU have agreed to can be placed in your new Home Care Agreement. If this is happening to You, do not sign and immediately look around and choose another Provider.
Home Care - a guide to your consumer rights
YOU have the same rights as when you buy goods or services under the Australian Consumer Law. The reforms are in response to mounting concerns raised by aged care consumers and families about the lack of transparency and comparability of home care pricing information, and the high administration prices being charged by some providers.
A detailed guide for consumers, families, carers and advocates on how consumer laws apply to home care arrangements.
13 July 2018
Do you need to advise or refer a patient or carer for support services to help patients stay living at home, or moving to an aged care home? General information and how to apply or refer to services is available on the My Aged Care website: www.myagedcare.gov.au
Services range from helping with daily tasks to end-of-life care, support for carers, respite care and access to residential aged care. Some services are available while the patient is living at home and listed below (sourced from the My Aged Care portal).
https://bsphn.org.au/programs/older-people/my-aged-care/
Community and home support
Food services
Allied health support services
Respite care Respite care provides care for you while your carer takes a break.
A home care package may now also be used to support the use of:
Note: when exiting your current Provider, the Maximum Amount they can charge you for 'Exit Fees'* cannot be more than the Maximum Amount that MUST have been put in your original Home Care Agreement with them. Your Provider CANNOT change the conditions of your Home Care Agreement with them without Your Consent.
* the Maximum Exit $ Amount for each Provider will be published on MyAgedCare before it is included in your Home Care Agreement. You may also be charged some Administration Costs. https://www.myagedcare.gov.au/find-a-provider?tab=home-care-package-providers
Since 1 July 2019 home care providers will need to publish their prices in a new standardised home care pricing Schedule on the My Aged Care website. This transition to the new pricing structure may be an opportune time to analyse their current pricing policies and determine if they (the Provider) need to change their prices.
The Schedule will provide information on the common services and costs under a home care package.
This will better support senior Australians to understand and compare home care pricing information, and make a more informed decision about which provider is best placed to deliver your care.
01 July 2019
WHAT TO DO...
STEP 1: https://www.myagedcare.gov.au/find-a-provider
STEP 2: Click on "Help at Home"
STEP 3: Select your Suburb
STEP 4: Click on "Home Support Services" to get a list of Providers
OR “Home Care Package” Level 1, 2, 3 or 4
You can then click on the Providers name for their details
OR Just click on COMPARE – up to 3 at a time
and COMPARE ONE PROVIDER $ AGAINST ANOTHER... Just scroll down.
The funds in your home care package are to pay for help that keeps you safe and well at home. These are just a suggestion. You can talk about having other things too. Like wanting someone to accompany you to the footy, to the cinema, to be with you when you travel to see a relative, a family/friend's wedding, to pay for a taxi, instead of you having to wait for your Provider's bus, or to use YOUR money to purchase the latest wheelchair... Whatever YOU want...
These are what services have traditionally been on offer:
GENERAL SUPPORT SERVICES
• doing the cleaning and laundry
• doing the shopping and getting to appointments
• encouragement to take part in social and community activities
• gardening and home maintenance
• changes to your home to make it safer and easier for you to live there
• 24 hour on-call service
• lots of different kinds of advice about staying at home.
PERSONAL ASSISTANCE
• dressing, showering and using the toilet
• making meals and eating.
HELP TO STAY HEALTHY
• nurse visits
• seeing professionals like physiotherapists, speech therapists, occupational therapists, dentists, podiatrists and dieticians
• providing bandages and other items needed to look after wounds
• providing technological devices, equipment and other items that help you to do things like get around, look after your personal hygiene, make yourself
understood and generally stay safe.
For a more in-depth breakdown of the traditionally offered Care services, click here.
You can use it to pay for your regular care needs while you are away on holiday. And if you don’t use one or more of the services in your package for a period of time, because you are away or in hospital for example, you may be able to use or save some of the funds for other things. You can discuss how to use or save some of the funds for other things.
Are there any restrictions on what I can use my Home Care Package $ for?
The range of care and services a consumer may not use funds for includes:
Help to stay healthy:
Personal assistance:
What is a Home Care Agreement? Do make sure that the Provider's Exit Fee (for when/if you leave their services), is in your Home Care Agreement.
All people receiving care under a Home Care Package must be offered a Home Care Agreement. This is an agreement between you and your home care provider that sets out what care and services you will receive. Since 27 February 2017, this is YOUR CHOICE. Your Provider just holds the allocated monies to use on your behalf as per your Individual Plan.
Any government funding will be paid to the home care provider. Your provider can then spend the funds on the items you both agreed to in the Home Care Agreement. YOU can spell them out in your Agreement. Do also be aware that when/if YOU decide to go to another Provider; that whatever Exit Fee you have agreed on, and that appears in your Home Care Agreement, will be the $ that is allowed to be charged.
What is an individual plan?
You will be allocated a program coordinator whose role it is to organise and coordinate services and resources necessary to develop and implement your individual plan.
The individual plan will identify agreed upon goals to be achieved through the development of skills; the securing of resources; access to and coordination of services; the meeting of social, physical, medical, vocational, recreational and emotional needs. The plan may be recorded on an individual plan form or a form designed specifically for the program
What is the process?
A delegated staff member will:
What is the content of the individual plan?
The individual plan will:
As a potential Customer, do be aware of what your Home Care Agreement ACTUALLY says: Do Not Sign it until you have had it all explained to you AND YOU UNDERSTAND IT.
A potential Home Care Provider needs to bear in mind when offering your Home Care Agreement:
As a provider of home care you will want to promote your business so that you can compete for customers. But you also have to make sure that you don’t break the law by saying things to consumers that might mislead or confuse them. When you offer home care services to consumers it is important that you present information (whether it be written or verbal) to a consumer accurately, clearly and honestly. This allows consumers the opportunity to make decisions with all the facts. Under the ACL, businesses that do not do this are likely to be engaging in misleading and deceptive conduct.
Misleading and deceptive conduct can include practices such as:
Home Care Agreements need to be clear and easy to understand so that consumers are able to make informed decisions. Make sure that your Home Care Agreements are transparent, in plain language and highlight important terms, especially key information such as:
Example: A term in a Home Care Agreement says “you agree to allow the provider to place a caveat over your home to enable the collection of any unpaid fees”. This would likely be an unfair term as it is not reasonably necessary to protect the legitimate interests of the business in relation to government funded home care services and would cause significant detriment to the consumer if it were relied upon.
Even the bare bones home care management services still have management fees. These include administration and case management amounts that in some cases exceed 20 per cent of the funding. However, this is still significantly below an approximate industry average of 30 per cent with some operators charging above the 50 per cent mark.
Download your copy from the ACCC website: https://www.accc.gov.au/publications/home-care-services-your-business-rights-obligations
Home care services - your business rights & obligations.
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
What is Consumer Directed Care (CDC) ?
Since 1 July 2015, all Home Care Packages have been delivered on a Consumer Directed Care (CDC) basis. CDC is a new way of providing home care. It gives you more control and choice about the types of care and services you receive, how care is delivered and who delivers it to you.
Under CDC, you will determine the level of involvement you would like to have in managing your own package. You will be provided with a personalised budget so that you can see how much funding is available for services and how the money is being spent.
Priority:
Since 27 February 2017 there is a new way to manage access to Home Care Packages. There is now a national pool of all available packages. After assessment you will be placed in a national ‘prioritized queue’ until a Home Care Package becomes available to you. Your place in the queue will be determined by your personal needs and circumstances and the time you have been waiting for care.
A new readiness letter is being introduced to prompt clients on the national queue to prepare to receive their first home care package.
This letter will be sent to clients around 90 days before the expected assignment date of their first home care package. It is intended to improve awareness of the Home Care Packages Program and commence initial steps to make an informed choice about their care needs, such as finding an approved provider and undertaking a formal income assessment with the Department of Human Services.
It will also encourage people who do not want care now to opt themselves out of the queue before the package is assigned to them. ACATs who have elected to receive home care notifications on behalf of vulnerable clients will receive a notification of this correspondence.
It is important to note that this letter is not indicative of a client’s package assignment, but provides an indication of when they can expect to be assigned their first home care package (either approved or interim).
https://agedcare.health.gov.au/sites/g/files/net1426/f/documents/02_2018/summary_of_my_aged_care_system_changes_-_26_february_2018_0.pdf
Since 1 July 2015, all Home Care Packages were delivered on a CDC basis. Since 27 February 2017, the Package is YOURS. YOU choose your Provider.
The final stage of home care reform will be implemented in July 2018, when the Home Care Packages program and the Commonwealth Home Support Program are combined. The change is expected to open the way for consumers to choose small independent providers or deal directly with carers to make the most of their funding.
Do note however, that this has been put back a couple of years.
Strong competition will now come from labour hire companies that currently supply staff to aged care, home care franchise groups and residential care providers not yet delivering community care. Under these changes, existing residential care providers will be able to 'opt in' to provide home care as part of a simplified process.
How to complain about costs
All organisations must manage and administer funds in a transparent manner meeting quality and accountability requirements.
If you, your carer, or anyone else is concerned about what you are paying for services, including the monthly Administration Costs, you should approach the organisation providing your services in the first instance. If your complaint is unable to be resolved at this level, it can be escalated through the Aged Care Complaints Scheme, or other appropriate body that handles complaints related to your services.
13 April 2022
- Complex nursing care for assistance with activities predominately from the social, physical and medical domains. Needs identified in the psychological domain may be present with a high level of complexity/vulnerability
- Services such as management of stoma, pain and medication
- Client may also have limited mobility and need assistance with transfers (equipment needed)
- In short, a high level of care needs.
Note:
'client needs and the extent to which they are being met through current formal/informal support arrangements when determining recommendation for Home Care Package level 1 to 4'. This is Very relevant as a client/consumer may not be considered a 'high priority' if they have existing care arrangements in place via family or private services, and so would appear to be managing. Sustainability of carer arrangements is an important factor in keeping someone at home long term, and wherever possible respite services should be planned and regular. It is also important to note that CHSP services can be accessed by Home Care Package for respite when there is a need for the relief of carer stress or in times of crisis.
Preparing for change in home care models. Strategies for Success with Lorraine Poulos. Contact [email protected]
In Community Care Review - Spring 2018.
Many thanks for this well written article.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Questions for carers to ask the team caring for your loved one
Some of the questions found here may not be relevant to the stage of care of your friend or family member. But it is always good to clarify and ask any questions of the team caring for your loved one that you may have. No question is ever a wrong question, and your health care provider will always aim to answer all the questions you may have.
- What skills will I need as a carer?
- Do you think I can look after my partner, relative or friend at home?
- Can I get help if I cannot manage?
- What can I do if I am not coping?
- How can I best support the person I am caring for?
- What should I do if my partner, relative or friend won’t eat very much?
- If my partner, relative or friend eats more will this make them live longer?
- How can I assist health professionals to talk to my partner, relative or friend in a way that respects their personality/culture?
- Who can I talk to if I am concerned about the care my partner relative or friend is receiving?
- If I cannot manage to look after my partner, relative or friend at home, how can we come to terms with this?
- What should I say when the person I am caring for asks: ‘Am I dying?’
- Will you be able to tell me when it is getting close to the time that he/she will die?
- When should I call the rest of the family? What should I say to them? Could you speak with them?
- How do I know when he/she has died?
- What happens after he/she dies (eg: what happens to their body, how do we arrange a funeral)?
- What support is available for the family after the person dies?
https://palliativecare.org.au/resources/questions-for-carers-to-ask-the-team-caring-for-your-loved-one
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
What Is A Home-Care Package?
Home-care packages are care and support services that are subsidised by the Federal Government, with the aim of keeping people living independently at home for as long as possible.
Some Services Covered By Home-Care Packages May Surprise You!
- Pet support – with 38 per cent of Australian owning a dog and 29 per cent with a cat, many older people require help taking care of a pet. You can use some of your home care package to cover pet support.
- Companionship – loneliness is one of the most serious issues for older people, both in terms of their health and their quality of life. You can use your home care package simply for companionship at home.
- Social support – your home care provider can take you to visit social supportgroups or on fun outings to do things you like to do, such as going to a movie, or visiting friends.
- Taxis – home care can also be used for taxi vouchers to help you get around.
- Manicures – home care providers may be able to provide manicures, which can be especially helpful for those whose fine motor skills may be affected by medical conditions.
- Massages – massages can help to relieve stress. Lymphedema massage can help to reduce swelling in the legs. Your home care provider may be able to provide massages.
- Technology – home care packages can be used to purchase technology and to learn how to use it. Technology is an essential part of everyday life these days, whether it be to keep in touch with friends or family, or to set up reminders for when to take your medication.
- Creative activities – you can use some of your home care package on creative pursuits, such as dance, painting or music sessions – which can deliver great improvements to your mental wellbeing and allow you to continue following your passions.
- Help with showering, toileting, and dressing
- Help with mobility
- Help with communication
- Help to prepare meals, and assistance eating
- Help can be provided with continence management
- Aids such as crutches, walking frames, mechanical devices for lifting, pressure relieving mattresses and bed-rails can be provided, and you can receive help in learning how to use them
- Speech therapy
- Podiatry
- Occupational therapy
- Physiotherapy
- Hearing and vision services
- Help with shopping
- Help to visit the doctor or attend social activities
- Help managing skin integrity
- Medication management
- Help keeping your home clean and tidy
- Washing, sorting, folding and ironing laundry
04 February 2019
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
The government has released a new data table revealing the median cost of common home care services across Australia, which it hopes will act as a carrot to improve service offerings and a stick against unjustified charges.
Richard Colbeck
Older Australians and their families will also be able to get an idea of standard pricing to help them make decisions about whether a provider’s prices are fair, says aged care services minister Richard Colbeck.
The table shows median prices for
- nursing,
- in-home respite,
- personal care and
- cleaning,
- as well as package and management.
The changes to how we pay home care subsidies and supplements to providers will occur in 2 phases. Instead of paying the total in advance, we will pay in arrears for services delivered. We will hold unspent funds for care recipients. This is in line with other Government-funded programs.
Study unpacks experiences of home care packages
By Judy Skatssoon on February 5, 2020 in Community Care Review
Home care recipients have told researchers they sometimes have to fight to get their provider to deliver services they are due, describing it as “a battle” and “like pulling teeth”. Dr Sarah Russell
The government-commissioned study published in the Australasian Journal on Ageing interviewed 37 Home Care Package (HCP) recipients between September and November 2018. Participants were asked a series of questions relating to their degree of satisfaction with their HCP, including how they went about getting their services, how they identified providers, whether services were meeting their needs and about the staff who came to their home.
It builds on an earlier study released last year.
The current research, Consumer experiences of home care packages, says tighter regulation of providers, attention to fees and minimal standards of training would result in more positive consumer experiences.
https://www.australianageingagenda.com.au/2020/02/05/study-unpacks-experiences-of-home-care-packages/
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
Home Care Package Calculation of your cost of care form (SA456)
Use this form to give us your income details. We’ll use these details to assess how much you need to pay for a Home Care Package.
You only need to complete this form if you don’t get a means tested income support payment from the Department of Human Services.
18 July 2019
New Aged care means assessment forms
The Department of Human Services (DHS) has released the new Aged Care Calculation of your cost of care (SA486) digital form. Your clients can fill it in online, print and sign it and send it to DHS with their supporting documents. The digital form uses dynamic questions tailored to the customers’ individual circumstances.
For clients who would prefer to use our simplified paper forms, they are as follows:
- Home Care Package Calculation of your cost of care (SA456)
- Residential Aged Care Calculation of your cost of care (SA457)
- Residential Aged Care Property details for Centrelink and DVA customers (SA485)
These forms are all available on the DHS website. Tips on how to download the digital form can be found here.
Aged care means tests: https://www.humanservices.gov.au/individuals/services/aged-care-means-tests
We assess your financial details to work out how much you need to pay towards aged care.
Customers commencing a Home Care Package don’t need to fill in a form if they get a means tested income support payment from Centrelink or DVA.
Customers entering Residential Care don’t need to fill in a form if they:
- get a means tested income support payment, and
- don’t own their own home.
It is important to make sure their income and assets are up to date when they enter into care to ensure their assessment can be completed automatically. They can do this by accessing their Centrelink online account or by calling Centrelink on 132 300or DVA on 1800 555 254.
Department of Health
13 August 2019
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Self Service
You can do most of your Centrelink, Medicare and Child Support business using our Express Plus mobile apps, online accounts or phone self service.
Soon myGov will be the only way you can access your Centrelink online account. Start using myGov now.
- You can find out if any of our services are unavailable by going to customer service changes.
- Centrelink online accounts and the Express Plus Centrelink and Express Plus Lite mobile apps are available 24/7.
- Medicare online accounts and the Express Plus Medicare mobile app are available 24/7.
Login to My Aged Care using myGov
My Aged Care client record
When you call My Aged Care, our contact centre staff will ask you a number of questions to help us understand your needs. The contact centre will also seek your consent to create a personalised client record which will hold information on your needs and any services put in place. The record will mean you won’t have to retell your story on multiple occasions to the contact centre, assessors and service providers.
If you have a client record with My Aged Care you can access your client record using myGov. The client record allows you to:
- update your personal details
- view your action or support plan, which outlines your assessed care needs
- view a summary of My Aged Care activities recently undertaken, such as your calls to My Aged Care
- view any referrals to service providers and their status
- update your client representatives. These are the people you have given permission to view your client record
- view your assessments and/or services.
For more information, please read the My Aged Care Client Portal User Guide (PDF, 3.2Mb).
AGED CARE QUALITY AND SAFETY COMMISSION
Update on quality standards
Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission 1800 550 552 regarding a Commonwealth-subsidised residential or home-based aged care service
https://www.agedcarequality.gov.au/
Minister Wyatt announced that the Complaints Commissioner and the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency will form part of the New Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission in January 2019. "I am confident the new Commission will better target sub-standard care. It will be a central point to identify failures, highlights quality concerns and have them rectified,” he says.
The Commission replaces the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency and the Aged Care Complaints Commissioner. Combining these functions into one independent agency strengthens the focus on consumers, streamlines regulation, supports better engagement with consumers and providers, and promotes transparency.
The new Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission began on January 1st, 2019.
Who do the Act and Rules apply to?
- Approved providers of residential aged care services, home care services and short-term restorative care services.
- Service providers of Commonwealth-funded aged care services (this includes Commonwealth Home Support Programme and National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Flexible Care Program (NATSIFACP) services).
What changes can services and providers expect?
The new Rules look quite different due to the combined functions under the Act. However, while the Rules have combined a number of previously separate legislative instruments, the core processes are preserved.
Factsheets & FAQs
Aged Care - Flexible
Aged Care – Home and Community
Aged Care – Residential
Assessing services
26 June 2019
It will have a budget of almost $300 million over four years, employing dozens of additional senior compliance officers. The new Commission will immediately absorb the roles of the current Aged Care Complaints Commissioner and the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency and, from January 2020, also take over the Department of Health's aged-care compliance responsibilities.
Key Changes under the new Commission Act and Rules.
The new commissioners of the Royal Commission in to Aged Care Quality and Safety has written to the nation’s top 100 aged care operators, asking them to self-report on details of their operations. The request for information is the first step in the Royal Commission’s information gathering process. The deadline for providing information is January. Smaller operators will also be contacted, and will be given a later deadline.
The letters mark what will be a huge information-gathering process involving every aged care facility in Australia, and also begins a process of review for all operators of their own individual systems and processes.
26 June 2019
= - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = -
https://www.myagedcare.gov.au/view-your-my-aged-care-client-record
Self service - You can do most of your Centrelink, Medicare and Child Support business using our Express Plus mobile apps, online accounts or phone self service.
The types of services provided under a Home Care Package will depend on YOUR needs.
Your home care provider will co-ordinate care and services to support you at home.
YOU get to decide what YOU Want.
Anything from paying for your own walker, wheelchair, a ramp at the front door, air conditioner, washing machine... to having someone accompany you on a family visit... YOUR Choice... If your Provider cannot/or is unwilling to do what YOU want, they can 'broker it out' to someone else... OR, now that we are in a Consumer Directed Control world, YOU can change your Provider.
YOU Choose! It's all about YOU now. How do you want to live Your Life?
Since 1 July 2019 home care providers will need to publish their prices in a new standardised home care pricing Schedule on the My Aged Care website. This transition to the new pricing structure may be an opportune time to analyse their current pricing policies and determine if they (the Provider) need to change their prices.
The Schedule will provide information on the common services and costs under a home care package.
This will better support senior Australians to understand and compare home care pricing information, and make a more informed decision about which provider is best placed to deliver your care.
01 July 2019
WHAT TO DO...
STEP 1: https://www.myagedcare.gov.au/find-a-provider
STEP 2: Click on "Help at Home"
STEP 3: Select your Suburb
STEP 4: Click on "Home Support Services" to get a list of Providers
OR “Home Care Package” Level 1, 2, 3 or 4
You can then click on the Providers name for their details
OR Just click on COMPARE – up to 3 at a time
and COMPARE ONE PROVIDER $ AGAINST ANOTHER... Just scroll down.
You are looking at:-
Case Management - approximate number of hours per fortnight
- Fully funded by Provider
- Self-managed by YOU
Price for Common Services - shown as $ per hour
- Personal Care
- Nursing
- Cleaning and Household tasks
- Light gardening
- In-home Respite
Other costs:
- Package management
- Staff travel costs to visit you
- Separate cost when you want to receive services from a different Provider
- Maximum Exit $ amount
It's quite an Eye-opener!!!
= - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - =
https://www.australianageingagenda.com.au/2018/04/12/key-considerations-when-negotiating-cdc-package-spending/
The Department of Health says the types of care and services provided under a home care package will depend on the person’s assessed care needs.
A package should help older people to stay at home, provide tailored services and cover a person’s care and safety needs.
If a package is used to contribute towards the cost of items within a consumer’s home, the impact on a person’s individual budget, capacity to deliver other care and services and responsibility for any maintenance should be considered, the department says.
-------
What is the Aged Care Assessment (ACAT) Team?
The ACAT assess people’s eligibility for Home Care Packages and other residential care services. They are professional health and community care clinicians who visit you at home to assess your needs. They do a comprehensive assessment for your eligibility for a Home Care Package, residential respite care or permanent residential care.
Comprehensive Assessment (ACAT only)
A Comprehensive Assessment, undertaken by the ACATs, builds on the information collected in the contact centre screening and Home Support Assessment (if applicable) and in a suitable face-to-face context (preferably in the client’s usual accommodation setting) to determine a client’s eligibility for care types under the Act. It encompasses the same client information as the Home Support Assessment at a deeper level.
Types of Assessment: You are looking at page 10.
https://agedcare.health.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/06_2018/my-aged-care-assessment-manual-june-2018-v1-1.pdf
The assessor will comprehensively assess:
- the client’s physical capability,
- medical condition,
- psychosocial factors,
- cognitive and behavioral factors,
- physical environmental factors
- and restorative needs.
The assessor and client will work together to establish a support plan that reflects the client’s strengths and abilities, areas of difficulty, and the support that will best meet their needs and goals. This will include the consideration of formal and informal services as well as reablement and/or restorative pathways.
Where a care type under the Act is identified as the most appropriate type of support to meet the client’s needs, and the client meets the eligibility criteria, the assessor will make a recommendation for approval. A client may be approved for a Home Care Package, Residential Care, Residential Respite Care or Flexible Care (Transition Care Program [TCP] or Short-Term Restorative Care [STRC]). Clients may also be referred to CHSP services where appropriate.
https://www.myagedcare.gov.au/manage-your-home-care-package-services
WHAT KINDS OF ASSISTANCE CAN I HAVE? Whatever YOU want... You are not limited by what your Provider can actually provide. If you want something different, they can 'broker' it out on your behalf.
In More Depth: CDC means YOUR Choice
and
Do be aware that since 27 February 2017, the package (Level 1, 2, 3 or 4) goes to YOU. You choose your own Provider and the Government then gives them the $ to spend on what YOU Want. Do be aware that some Providers are charging joining, upgrade or exit fees for their in home health and wellbeing services. This is Not Mandatory, and should any Provider place these restrictions in your New Home Care Agreement, Do NOT sign it. You do NOT have to pay for these. Only those things which YOU have agreed to can be placed in your new Home Care Agreement. If this is happening to You, do not sign and immediately look around and choose another Provider.
Home Care - a guide to your consumer rights
YOU have the same rights as when you buy goods or services under the Australian Consumer Law. The reforms are in response to mounting concerns raised by aged care consumers and families about the lack of transparency and comparability of home care pricing information, and the high administration prices being charged by some providers.
A detailed guide for consumers, families, carers and advocates on how consumer laws apply to home care arrangements.
13 July 2018
Do you need to advise or refer a patient or carer for support services to help patients stay living at home, or moving to an aged care home? General information and how to apply or refer to services is available on the My Aged Care website: www.myagedcare.gov.au
Services range from helping with daily tasks to end-of-life care, support for carers, respite care and access to residential aged care. Some services are available while the patient is living at home and listed below (sourced from the My Aged Care portal).
https://bsphn.org.au/programs/older-people/my-aged-care/
Community and home support
- domestic assistance – household jobs (e.g. cleaning or laundry)
- personal care – help with bathing, showering or getting dressed
- home maintenance – minor general repairs and caring for the house or garden, such as changing light bulbs or replacing tap washers
- home modification – minor installation of safety aids, such as alarms, ramps and support rails at home
- nursing care – qualified nurse to dress a wound or provide continence advice at home
- social support – group social activities in a community-based setting
- transport – help with going shopping or attending appointments.
Food services
- providing meals at a community centre
- help with shopping for food, learning to cook, making meals and storing food at home
- delivering meals to home.
Allied health support services
- physiotherapy (exercises, mobility, strength and balance)
- podiatry (foot care)
- speech pathology
- occupational therapy (help with recovering or maintaining physical ability)
- advice from a dietician (healthy eating)
- other allied health and therapy services.
Respite care Respite care provides care for you while your carer takes a break.
A home care package may now also be used to support the use of:
- telehealth: video conferencing and digital technology (including remote monitoring) to increase access to timely and appropriate care
- assistive technology: such as aids and equipment (particularly those that assist a person to perform daily living tasks), as well as devices that assist mobility, communication and personal safety
- aids and equipment: some aids and equipment that are directly associated with your care needs can be purchased using funds from your package budget.
Note: when exiting your current Provider, the Maximum Amount they can charge you for 'Exit Fees'* cannot be more than the Maximum Amount that MUST have been put in your original Home Care Agreement with them. Your Provider CANNOT change the conditions of your Home Care Agreement with them without Your Consent.
* the Maximum Exit $ Amount for each Provider will be published on MyAgedCare before it is included in your Home Care Agreement. You may also be charged some Administration Costs. https://www.myagedcare.gov.au/find-a-provider?tab=home-care-package-providers
Since 1 July 2019 home care providers will need to publish their prices in a new standardised home care pricing Schedule on the My Aged Care website. This transition to the new pricing structure may be an opportune time to analyse their current pricing policies and determine if they (the Provider) need to change their prices.
The Schedule will provide information on the common services and costs under a home care package.
This will better support senior Australians to understand and compare home care pricing information, and make a more informed decision about which provider is best placed to deliver your care.
01 July 2019
WHAT TO DO...
STEP 1: https://www.myagedcare.gov.au/find-a-provider
STEP 2: Click on "Help at Home"
STEP 3: Select your Suburb
STEP 4: Click on "Home Support Services" to get a list of Providers
OR “Home Care Package” Level 1, 2, 3 or 4
You can then click on the Providers name for their details
OR Just click on COMPARE – up to 3 at a time
and COMPARE ONE PROVIDER $ AGAINST ANOTHER... Just scroll down.
The funds in your home care package are to pay for help that keeps you safe and well at home. These are just a suggestion. You can talk about having other things too. Like wanting someone to accompany you to the footy, to the cinema, to be with you when you travel to see a relative, a family/friend's wedding, to pay for a taxi, instead of you having to wait for your Provider's bus, or to use YOUR money to purchase the latest wheelchair... Whatever YOU want...
These are what services have traditionally been on offer:
GENERAL SUPPORT SERVICES
• doing the cleaning and laundry
• doing the shopping and getting to appointments
• encouragement to take part in social and community activities
• gardening and home maintenance
• changes to your home to make it safer and easier for you to live there
• 24 hour on-call service
• lots of different kinds of advice about staying at home.
PERSONAL ASSISTANCE
• dressing, showering and using the toilet
• making meals and eating.
HELP TO STAY HEALTHY
• nurse visits
• seeing professionals like physiotherapists, speech therapists, occupational therapists, dentists, podiatrists and dieticians
• providing bandages and other items needed to look after wounds
• providing technological devices, equipment and other items that help you to do things like get around, look after your personal hygiene, make yourself
understood and generally stay safe.
For a more in-depth breakdown of the traditionally offered Care services, click here.
You can use it to pay for your regular care needs while you are away on holiday. And if you don’t use one or more of the services in your package for a period of time, because you are away or in hospital for example, you may be able to use or save some of the funds for other things. You can discuss how to use or save some of the funds for other things.
Are there any restrictions on what I can use my Home Care Package $ for?
The range of care and services a consumer may not use funds for includes:
- items that would normally be purchased out of general income
- purchase of food, except as part of enteral feeding requirements
- payment for permanent accommodation, including assistance with home purchase, mortgage payments or rent
- payment of home care fees
- payment of fees or charges for other types of care funded or jointly funded by the Australian Government
- home modifications or capital items that are not related to your care needs
- travel and accommodation for holidays
- cost of entertainment activities, such as club memberships and tickets to sporting events
- gambling activities
- illegal activities
- payment for services and items covered by the Medicare Benefits Schedule or the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.
Help to stay healthy:
- nurse visits
- seeing professionals like physiotherapists, speech therapists, occupational therapists, dentists and podiatrists
- providing bandages and other items needed to look after wounds
- providing technological devices, equipment and other items that help you to do things like get around, look after your personal hygiene, make yourself understood and generally stay safe.
Personal assistance:
- dressing, showering and using the toilet
- making meals and eating.
- You and your home care provider can also negotiate other services to support you to live at home where these are identified in your care plan. For example, you may benefit from some aids and equipment to assist with mobility, communication or personal safety.
- Whatever is agreed must be affordable within the funding available for the package.
What is a Home Care Agreement? Do make sure that the Provider's Exit Fee (for when/if you leave their services), is in your Home Care Agreement.
All people receiving care under a Home Care Package must be offered a Home Care Agreement. This is an agreement between you and your home care provider that sets out what care and services you will receive. Since 27 February 2017, this is YOUR CHOICE. Your Provider just holds the allocated monies to use on your behalf as per your Individual Plan.
- Actively managing unspent funds: This fact sheet provides information to home care providers on how to manage the accumulation of unspent funds in home care packages.
Any government funding will be paid to the home care provider. Your provider can then spend the funds on the items you both agreed to in the Home Care Agreement. YOU can spell them out in your Agreement. Do also be aware that when/if YOU decide to go to another Provider; that whatever Exit Fee you have agreed on, and that appears in your Home Care Agreement, will be the $ that is allowed to be charged.
What is an individual plan?
You will be allocated a program coordinator whose role it is to organise and coordinate services and resources necessary to develop and implement your individual plan.
The individual plan will identify agreed upon goals to be achieved through the development of skills; the securing of resources; access to and coordination of services; the meeting of social, physical, medical, vocational, recreational and emotional needs. The plan may be recorded on an individual plan form or a form designed specifically for the program
What is the process?
A delegated staff member will:
- negotiate an individual plan as soon as possible and prior to receipt of service (if the service is short term there may only be a statement outlining the service provided)
- review your plan within the specified timeframes stated in the plan; when significant unplanned changes occur; or as requested by you
- formally review individual plans annually
- ensure that strategies to meet goals are developed in the least restrictive manner
- ensure that a strengths-based approach is used when communicating with you and others in the planning process, and ensure your skills and abilities are recognised
- encourage you to include a range of people in the planning process
- view your life holistically; taking into account as many aspects of your life as possible in the planning process.
What is the content of the individual plan?
The individual plan will:
- identify agreed upon goals to be achieved
- show how priorities are met
- show how unmet needs are addressed
- address needs without discrimination
- describe the skills to be developed
- describe the resources to be used
- show how services are coordinated
- show how your needs are met including health and wellbeing, behavioural support, physical, psychosocial, communication, cultural and decision-making
- and whatever else YOU have decided that YOU want.
As a potential Customer, do be aware of what your Home Care Agreement ACTUALLY says: Do Not Sign it until you have had it all explained to you AND YOU UNDERSTAND IT.
A potential Home Care Provider needs to bear in mind when offering your Home Care Agreement:
As a provider of home care you will want to promote your business so that you can compete for customers. But you also have to make sure that you don’t break the law by saying things to consumers that might mislead or confuse them. When you offer home care services to consumers it is important that you present information (whether it be written or verbal) to a consumer accurately, clearly and honestly. This allows consumers the opportunity to make decisions with all the facts. Under the ACL, businesses that do not do this are likely to be engaging in misleading and deceptive conduct.
Misleading and deceptive conduct can include practices such as:
- false claims or statements about your home care services or the price
- false claims about a consumer’s legal rights
- not telling a consumer important information
- hiding important information in small print or disclaimers
- using overly complex language that means important information is not clear. Make sure that what you say or give to consumers is easy to understand, honest, and contains all the relevant information. Being honest and clear with your customers is the best way to promote longer relationships and grow your business.
Home Care Agreements need to be clear and easy to understand so that consumers are able to make informed decisions. Make sure that your Home Care Agreements are transparent, in plain language and highlight important terms, especially key information such as:
- what services are to be provided, by who, when and how
- costs and fees
- any conditions that may apply to the Home Care Agreement (for example termination conditions).
- Allow consumers enough time to read the Home Care Agreement, ask questions and seek assistance or advice if they need to.
- Never rush or pressure a consumer, as consumers have the right to take their time and seek financial or legal advice before signing.
Example: A term in a Home Care Agreement says “you agree to allow the provider to place a caveat over your home to enable the collection of any unpaid fees”. This would likely be an unfair term as it is not reasonably necessary to protect the legitimate interests of the business in relation to government funded home care services and would cause significant detriment to the consumer if it were relied upon.
Even the bare bones home care management services still have management fees. These include administration and case management amounts that in some cases exceed 20 per cent of the funding. However, this is still significantly below an approximate industry average of 30 per cent with some operators charging above the 50 per cent mark.
Download your copy from the ACCC website: https://www.accc.gov.au/publications/home-care-services-your-business-rights-obligations
Home care services - your business rights & obligations.
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
What is Consumer Directed Care (CDC) ?
Since 1 July 2015, all Home Care Packages have been delivered on a Consumer Directed Care (CDC) basis. CDC is a new way of providing home care. It gives you more control and choice about the types of care and services you receive, how care is delivered and who delivers it to you.
Under CDC, you will determine the level of involvement you would like to have in managing your own package. You will be provided with a personalised budget so that you can see how much funding is available for services and how the money is being spent.
Priority:
Since 27 February 2017 there is a new way to manage access to Home Care Packages. There is now a national pool of all available packages. After assessment you will be placed in a national ‘prioritized queue’ until a Home Care Package becomes available to you. Your place in the queue will be determined by your personal needs and circumstances and the time you have been waiting for care.
A new readiness letter is being introduced to prompt clients on the national queue to prepare to receive their first home care package.
This letter will be sent to clients around 90 days before the expected assignment date of their first home care package. It is intended to improve awareness of the Home Care Packages Program and commence initial steps to make an informed choice about their care needs, such as finding an approved provider and undertaking a formal income assessment with the Department of Human Services.
It will also encourage people who do not want care now to opt themselves out of the queue before the package is assigned to them. ACATs who have elected to receive home care notifications on behalf of vulnerable clients will receive a notification of this correspondence.
It is important to note that this letter is not indicative of a client’s package assignment, but provides an indication of when they can expect to be assigned their first home care package (either approved or interim).
https://agedcare.health.gov.au/sites/g/files/net1426/f/documents/02_2018/summary_of_my_aged_care_system_changes_-_26_february_2018_0.pdf
Since 1 July 2015, all Home Care Packages were delivered on a CDC basis. Since 27 February 2017, the Package is YOURS. YOU choose your Provider.
The final stage of home care reform will be implemented in July 2018, when the Home Care Packages program and the Commonwealth Home Support Program are combined. The change is expected to open the way for consumers to choose small independent providers or deal directly with carers to make the most of their funding.
Do note however, that this has been put back a couple of years.
Strong competition will now come from labour hire companies that currently supply staff to aged care, home care franchise groups and residential care providers not yet delivering community care. Under these changes, existing residential care providers will be able to 'opt in' to provide home care as part of a simplified process.
How to complain about costs
All organisations must manage and administer funds in a transparent manner meeting quality and accountability requirements.
If you, your carer, or anyone else is concerned about what you are paying for services, including the monthly Administration Costs, you should approach the organisation providing your services in the first instance. If your complaint is unable to be resolved at this level, it can be escalated through the Aged Care Complaints Scheme, or other appropriate body that handles complaints related to your services.
13 April 2022