Support at Home - May Newsletter

From 1 July 2025 the Support at Home programme rolls out. Support at Home will be replacing the existing Home Care Package programme, which means some changes for consumers. From the first announcement Support at Home has promised a ‘no worse off’ principal, so that anyone receiving or approved for care before 12 September 2024 will not be disadvantaged. Those in the aged care sector are hyper-aware of the pending changes and all working to ensure a smooth transition, however I’m finding many of my clients are unaware that these changes are coming.

For this reason, the theme I’ve chosen for May is

Support at Home.

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In writing this newsletter I spent some time considering what is actually helpful for consumers to know. There’s lots of nerdy, niche aged care, 209-page long program manuals available (that I’ve been enjoying consuming). However, I’m going to do my best to synthesise this into the key details that matter for consumers.

NO WORSE OFF PRINCIPAL

When Anthony Albanese announced the Support at Home program on 12 September 2024, one of the key pillars of the program was the ‘no worse off’ principal. This essentially means that if on 12 September 2024 you:

a)       Were already receiving services through a Home Care Package

b)       Had been assessed for a Home Care Package and were currently in the National Priority System (aka. the queue) OR

c)       Had been assessed for a Home Care Package and let it lapse (e.g. did not take it up with a provider at the time, but still have the approval sitting there)

…you will still fall under the existing Home Care Package arrangements.

This means if you were approved for a Level 3 (currently worth $40,945.70) on 17th August 2024, you will still be eligible for that Level 3 funding and the same co-contributions will apply.

FUNDING LEVELS

Support at Home offers additional funding levels with eight classifications:

1 -$11,000/year

2- $16,000/year

3- $22,000/year

4 -$30,000/year

5 -$40,000/year

6- $48,000/year

7 -$58,000/year

8 -$78,000/year

This is compared to an existing four funding levels under the Home Care Package programme:

1- $10,698.15/year

2- $18,812.10/year

3- $40,945.70/year

3- $40,945.70/year

4 -$62,075.55/year

There is also additional funding available for ‘short-term pathways’. The three short-term service classifications are:

-             the Restorative Care Pathway - $6,000 (12 weeks) additional care, can be increased to $12,000 if eligible

-             the End-of-Life Pathway - $25,000 (12 weeks)

-             the Assistive Technology and Home Modifications (AT-HM) Scheme - $500 for low needs, $2,000 for medium and $15,000 for high.

The AT-HM funding is especially helpful as the money is available upfront for consumers to use. Previously you would need to save funds to be able to purchase equipment, but now this can be done more proactive if eligible.

FEES/CONTRIBUTIONS

MANAGEMENT FEES

Management fees are deducted from your allocated funding –this means you do not personally pay for them. They are simply taken from the funding provided by the Government.

Currently, home care providers can set their own management fees (care management & package management) which is capped at 35% of the allocated funding. Under Support at Home, providers can only charge a 10% care management fee, which will still be deducted from your allocated funding.

CONTRIBUTIONS

Under the Home Care Package programme, full pensioners pay nothing towards their care. Part-pensioners and self-funded retirees pay anywhere from $1.00/day to $37.70/day depending on their level of income. ThisIncome Tested Fee is payable every day, whether you have a service or not.

Support at Home has a different contribution structure, by which you only pay a contribution for the services you use and this contribution varies depending on the type of service and your pension level.

Before I jump into the fees, it’s important to know that all services you can access (e.g. showering, gardening, respite, cleaning, meal preparation etc) have been classified into three categories:

-             Clinical Supports – nursing & allied health services

-             Independence - personal care, social support, respite, transport and assistive technology and home modifications

-             Everyday Living – domestic assistance, home maintenance & meals

Clinical supports are considered essential, independence are things that help you remain at home and everyday living are general tasks we all complete.

For this reason, your contributions increase for what the government considers ‘less essential’ services.

		Clinical Supports	Independence	Everyday Living
	Full-pensioner	0%	5%	17.5%
	Part-pensioner and self-funded CSHC holder	0%	Between 5 and 50%	Between 17.5% and 80%
	Self-funded non-CSHC holder and means not disclosed	0%	50%	80%

Remember, this does not apply if you are already receiving services through a Home Care Package or were approved before 12th September 2024.

PRIORITY SYSTEM & INTERIM FUNDING

Current wait times under Home Care Packages are 6-9 months for a L1 or L2, 9-12 months for a L3 and 12-15 months for a L4. There is currently only a regular or high priority package, with high being reserved for those in dire need of services e.g. palliative.

Those assessed under Support at Home now have access to four different priority levels – urgent, high, medium and standard. They are also offering interim funding for those awaiting care which provides an allocation of 60% of their total funding classification. E.g. if someone was classified 5 which provides $40,000/year, they could access $24,000 in the interim.

TRANSITIONING TO SUPPORT AT HOME

Those currently receiving services under a Home Care Package (who were approved before 12th September 2024) can opt to transition to Support at Home. Depending on the services you are receiving and the contributions you currently make, I would strongly encourage you to seek independent financial advice before moving over.

For example, if you’re a full pensioner with a Home Care Package (therefore not paying any Income Tested Fees) and are currently receiving cleaning and gardening (now considered Everyday Living with a 17.5% co-payment), it likely wouldn’t make sense for you to transition.

There are some scenarios where people could benefit, but independent financial advice (with an aged care specialist) is the way to go before making the change.

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If the info above still leaves you feeling overwhelmed of confused, you can always speak to your existing or future provider. We are all learning these changes at the same time, but providers will have the most up-to-date info to share with you.

Alternatively, I’m always happy to chat through your individual circumstance and point you in the right direction where I can. My number is 0402 353 426 if you ever want to get in touch.

As always, please feel free to pass this newsletter on to friends or family. If they want to subscribe, they can do so via my website.

If you want to have a look through some old podcast episodes, you can search for ‘The Truth About Ageing’. I release episodes sporadically which are available through your favourite podcast app (Apple Podcasts, Spotify) or at www.navigateagedcare.com.au/podcast.

Occasionally I also post updates on socials, which you can find at:

Facebook - @navigateagedcareau

Instagram - @thetruthaboutageing

Thank you again for being part of the Navigate gang.

Big love,

Kate.

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