Catholic Health Australia has given its conditional support to the Commonwealth Government's plan to consolidate existing anti-discrimination laws into one piece of legislation. CHA told a Senate Inquiry that Catholic hospitals and aged care services do not discriminate in either who they employ or provide hospital or aged care services to, but that the proposed laws risk imposing new compliance costs on human service organisations if the burden of proof is reversed to place the onus on service providers to disprove discrimination has occurred. Click here to read CHA's submission on proposed anti-discrimination reforms.

Catholic Health Australia's senior aged care policy adviser Nick Mersiades has conducted an analysis of the Government's aged care reforms announced on April 20, 2012. Click here to access the document.

In its submission on palliative care in Australia, Catholic Health Australia calls on governments to be mindful of some of society's most vulnerable and marginalised -- including those in prison, those with a disability and those with a mental illness -- when making plans on how best to deliver palliative care.

Click here to read CHA's submission.

The Australian Cost of Residential Aged Care Research, released on February 2, 2012, was conducted by accountancy firm Grant Thornton Australia. The study examined the costs of building and operating aged care facilities and revealed a funding deficit of up to $62 per bed per day for operators, casting doubts over the sustainability of the aged care sector.

Catholic Health Australia was one of the sponsors of the study, along with Aged Care Association of Australia, Aged and Community Services Australia, Aged Care Association South Australia, Australian Unity, Aged Care Association Australia NSW and Aged & Community Care Victoria.

• Download the report
• Read the media release on the report

The Productivity Commission's final report Caring for Older Australians was released by the Commonwealth Government for public consultation in August 2011. The report contains far-reaching recommendations for reform of Australia's aged care system.

Catholic Health Australia's initial analysis and assessment of the report's key recommendations may be downloaded by clicking here.

CHA has provided a submission to the Productivity Commission in response to its draft Report Caring for Older Australians, which was released in January 2011 for public consultation.  In its response, CHA notes that the Commission's draft recommendations embrace the reform directions put in CHA's submissions to the Inquiry, which called for fundamental reform of aged care in order to secure its sustainability and improve its responsiveness to individual consumer needs.  CHA's response, however, also canvases a number of aspects of some proposals which, if addressed , would strengthen the overall reform package.  Also attached is a supplementary submission made following CHA's appearance at the Commission's public hearings in April 2011 at which CHA was invited to provide specific comment on a number of issues.

• Download Supplementary submission in response to draft PC Report Caring for Older Australians - April 2011
• Download CHA's response to the PC's draft Report Caring for Older Australians (March 2011)
• Download attachment (Transition Arrangements) to CHA's response to PC's draft report (March 2011)
• Download CHA' Supplementary submission to PC Inquiry Caring for Older Australians (July 2010)
• Download CHA's initial submission to PC Inquiry Caring for Older Australians (April 2010)

CHA's response to the Department of Health and Ageing's recent issues paper on enhanced prudential arrangements for residential aged care accommodation bonds.

Download the submission

Download the final submission

Under current arrangements, the Commonwealth is the purchaser and price setter for residential aged care, with provision for co-payments from residents assessed as capable of contributing to the cost of their care. However, because the Commonwealth also controls most aspects of the supply of aged care services, there is no market informed basis for setting prices for these services. Catholic Health Australia argues for a long term and transparent basis for setting fair prices.

Download the submission

CHA's expert policy analysts produced analysis of the parties' aged care election policies as they are announced.

• Assessing the Coalition's aged care policy - by Senior Aged Care Policy Adviser Nick Mersiades
• Assessing the Greens' aged care policy - by Senior Aged Care Policy Adviser Nick Mersiades