The Australian Government introduced the Aged Care Bill 2024 to Parliament on 12 September. If passed by the Parliament, the Aged Care Bill 2024 will become the new Aged Care Act and will start on 1 July 2025. The Bill includes changes to the circumstances in which young people can enter residential aged care.
The Senate referred the Aged Care Bill 2024 to the Community Affairs Legislation Committee for inquiry and report by 31 October 2024. The Summer Foundation made a submission to the Inquiry and our Head of Policy, Communications and Systems Change, Jessica Walker appeared at an Inquiry hearing in Melbourne on 17 October.
She outlined our concerns that the current drafting of the criteria for determining eligibility for entry into the aged care system opens a loophole for young people to enter aged care.
The Summer Foundation believes there must be additional changes to the Bill to ensure aged care is preserved for supporting older people and does not become a substitute for a lack of access to appropriate housing.
The Summer Foundation also made a submission to the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission’s development of regulation and practice settings to enable innovative housing and support.
The Summer Foundation’s position is that the considered design of the system of proportionate regulation is key to ensuring that the NDIS can achieve its original intent of supporting the independence and social and economic participation of people with disability.
In this approach, regulation must:
- Have a focus on participant outcomes and achieving the overall intent of the NDIS
- Maintain and encourage flexibility and innovation in housing and support for people with disability
- Balance dignity of risk and strengthen safeguards where required