Last night’s Budget was largely a reannouncement of a number of previously announced initiatives, including the increased number of Home Care Packages (HCPs), and the one-off payment for residential care facilities in acknowledgement of the difficult financial position many providers are in.
New aged care initiatives announced last night included funding certainty for the Commonwealth Home Support Program (CHSP) and $2.6 million to support the implementation of the Aged Care Workforce Strategy. These are important measures, but they need to be followed up with much more coordinated action from the whole of government to address the serious issues we are facing as a sector.