News

Released: 28 March 2017

A discussion starter about end of life care, specifically developed for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, was launched today at Parliament House by the Minister for Aged Care and Minister for Indigenous Health, Ken Wyatt.

Launching the Dying toTalk resources, Minister Wyatt said that starting a discussion about dying is never easy and can be hard when we want to talk to our families and friends about dying but they don’t want to listen.

“Sometimes, we put these discussions off because its confronting and we don’t want to face our own mortality,” he said.

“No matter what the reasons, I am very grateful to live in a country that has such a strong palliative care system in place and palliative care health professionals who help us tackle these discussions.

Read more:

New resources to help Indigenous Australians broach end of life discussions (.pdf)

A new national system for prioritising access to home care has now been established. The new system will allow home care packages to be assigned to consumers according to:

• their relative needs; and

• how long they have been waiting for care.

The department has started releasing home care packages through the new system, with approximately 11,300 packages scheduled for release throughout March 2017. As at 21 March 2017 approximately 1,200 have been released with an additional 10,100 to be released over the coming week. From next month, packages will be released on a regular basis, likely to be weekly.

The department hosted a webinar on 28 March 2017. That webinar can be viewed again here.

Read more:

Release of home care packages

Quick Reference Guide – Create service delivery outlets and add service information using the My Aged Care provider portal (.pdf)

Provider fact sheets, quick reference guides and videos

The Department of Health has released a new edition of its ‘Information for Aged Care Providers’ newsletter.

Read more:

Information for Aged Care Providers – Issue #2017/04 (.pdf)

For clients running our Bond & Billing module/Finance module, we have released the new 20th March rate updates and 1st April interest rate updates to both version 4 and version 5 of Manad Plus.

If you don’t believe your database has the latest rates, then please contact our Help Desk on 1300 62 62 32 (option 1) or email: support@manad.com.au

The schedules for residential and home care fees and charges, as well as subsidies and supplements, have been updated to take effect from 20 March 2017 in line with changes to the basic age pension and indexation rates.

The Maximum Permissible Interest Rate (MPIR) applicable to ‘refund periods’ for refundable deposit balances and accommodation bond balances and for accommodation prices will increase from 5.76% to 5.78% for the period of 1 April 2017 to 30 June 2017.

The Base Interest Rate remains unchanged at 3.75%.

Read more:

Indexation rates for Residential Aged Care and Home Care Packages and changes to the Maximum Permissible Interest Rate (MPIR)

Residential Aged Care and Home Care Subsides and Supplements (.pdf)

Schedule of Fees and Charges – Residential and Home Care – for care recipients who commenced care on or after 1 July 2014 (.pdf)

Schedule of Fees and Charges – Pre 1 July 2014 Residents (.pdf)

The WA Coroner has released a report addressing inquest findings about the care of a consumer in home care. It highlights the need for roles and responsibilities of care givers to be clearly documented.

The Coroner’s report recommended:

• That, if reasonably practicable, organisations providing home-care generate a document describing the roles and responsibilities of each person involved in a patient’s care, including where applicable the patient’s family or friends, and provide a copy of such a document to those persons at the outset of that care and from time to time as is reasonably necessary.

• That, home-care providers assess their patients’ needs on an on-going basis and, where a home-care provider considers that the care it is able to provide to a patient under a home-care package cannot meet the patient’s needs, the home-care provider meet with the patient and the patients’ next of kin where appropriate to so inform the patient and to discuss the patient’s further care.

Read more:

Industry alert: Coroner’s recommendations for home care

Coroner’s Report (.pdf)

The Australian Aged Care Quality Agency has released the March 2017 issue of their ‘Quality Standard’ newsletter.

Read more:

Quality Standard – March 2017 (.pdf)

Australian Aged Care Quality Agency

Following consultation with the sector, the government is implementing changes to the ACFI announced in the 2015-16 Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook (MYEFO) measure, Aged Care Provider Funding – improved compliance.

To implement some of the changes, the following amendments have been made to the Classification Principles 2014 (the Principles), effective from 1 March 2017:

• The department will be able to take into account the manner in which care was provided, and the qualifications of the person providing the treatment in determining the level of care that a care recipient needs.
• A fee of $375 (GST exclusive) per ACFI question will be charged for a request for reconsideration of an ACFI review decision.

Read more:

Amendments to the ACFI Classification Principles – 1 March 2017

Amendments to ACFI – 1 March 2017

Basic Subsidy Amount (Aged Care Funding Instrument)

ACFI request for reconsideration template (.pdf)

The latest ACFI User Guide published on 9 December 2016 has been updated to address minor editorial errors.

View the latest version of the ACFI User Guide here:

Updated: 28 February 2017 – ACFI User Guide 2017 (.pdf)

FAQ’s have has also been published on the changes to ACFI 12.4: Complex Health Care Pain Management Questions:

Frequently Asked Questions – Changes to ACFI 12.4: Complex Health Care Pain Management Questions

Released: 27 February 2017

The Minister for Aged Care, Ken Wyatt, AM, MP, today launched Increasing Choice in Home Care, which gives consumers more choice in home care services – such as personal care, nursing and social support – to suit their individual needs.

Mr Wyatt said the major reform will improve the way services are delivered to older people in their homes.

“Changes to Home Care Packages, starting today, mean that funding for home care will – for the first time – follow the consumer, not the provider,” he said

“This major change allows older Australians to direct funding to the provider of their choice to meet their particular needs.

“If their care needs are not being met they can change providers more easily.

“This will result in service providers offering more flexible, personalised services that put older people and their families at the centre of the delivery of high-quality, innovative home care.”

Read more:

Older Australians to have more say in delivery of home care services (.pdf)