The Liberal and Nationals Government is delivering for senior Australians through a $537 million funding investment, responding to the three priority areas identified in the Aged Care Royal Commission Interim Report.
Wodonga based Nationals Senator for Victoria Bridget McKenzie welcomed the major funding boost, which will deliver 10,000 new home care packages; improve medication management for aged care residents with dementia and; and facilitate getting younger people out of residential aged care.
“Delivering quality aged care is a priority for people in Indi, and regional Victoria, so I’m very pleased our government is providing more support in these three priority areas identified by the Aged Care Royal Commission,” she said.
“Families in the North East want the confidence to know their loved ones will be treated with dignity and respect when they need care and I am committed to delivering that for people in rural and regional Victoria.”
The Government’s funding package includes the following measures:
- investing $496.3 million for an additional10,000 home care packages;
- providing $25.5 million to improve medication management programs to reduce the use of medication as a chemical restraint on aged care residents and at home, and new restrictions and education for prescribers on the use of medication as a chemical restraint;
- delivering $10 million for additional dementia training and support for aged care workers and providers, including to reduce the use of chemical restraint; and
- investing $4.7 million to help meet new targets to remove younger people with disabilities from residential aged care.
The 10,000 new home care packages would be rolled out from 1 December 2019 and will help more seniors to live in their own homes for longer. The additional packages are
strongly weighted towards people with highest needs, as recommended by the Royal Commission.
New funding measures would also support stronger restrictions of the use of medication as a chemical restraint by providing nearly 200,000 more medication management reviews, plus delivering more education and training to aged care workers to better manage dementia patients.
Under the package, the government will implement targets to end the flow of younger people under age 65 of entering residential aged care by 2022 and assist in ensuring that no people under the age of 65 are living in residential aged care by 2025, except in exceptional circumstances.
Full details of the government’s Aged Care Royal Commission Interim Report response package is available here: https://www.pm.gov.au/media/response-aged-care-royal-commission-interim-report.