Peak bodies raise concerns about draft Aged Care Act

Catholic Health Australia CEO Jason Kara joined the Council of the Ageing and other peak organisations this week to discuss some of the critical aspects of the new Aged Care Act.

Council of the Ageing (COTA) Australia held the panel discussion at its conference in Sydney, bringing together CHA, the Aged & Community Care Providers Association (ACCPA), Baptist Care and Uniting NSW/ACT to share their perspectives.

CHA argues the draft bill will require further refinement prior to its introduction to Parliament, issues which were also detailed in our submission to government including:

• The need for basic protections for aged care workers to ensure the challenging work they do is valued
• The statutory duty and compensation pathway provisions which could have significant unintended consequences for the workforce and the future viability of the aged care sector
• The compressed timeframes for development and consultation on the new Act which do not allow for sufficient analysis and resolution of policy issues
• Overlap and duplication of new provisions with existing legal protections and frameworks; and
• The missing chapters and detail needed to assess the impact of the new Act on the sector.

“The conference was a great opportunity for sector-wide stakeholders to collaboratively work through the component parts of the new Act,” said CHA Aged Care Policy Director Laura Heylan.

“We do have concerns and are urging the government to extend the 1 July implementation date so further consultation with our members can be undertaken in the months ahead.”

CHA members account for 12 per cent of all aged care facilities across Australia.

CHA CEO Jason Kara (left) joined others on a panel to discuss the draft bill, including ACCPA CEO Tom Symondson and COTA’s Deputy CEO Corey Irlam (right)