Greater Geelong Mayor Stretch Kontelj OAM has called on the Commonwealth Government to commit to aged care, as Council considers its response to Commonwealth Government funding changes.
The Mayor said that Council had heard the community feedback about aged care reform, and invited the government to work constructively with the City to create certainty for clients and staff.
The Mayor said that certainty could be created by an increase to the Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP) unit price, and by the Government working collaboratively around funding arrangements.
With an election campaign currently underway, Mayor Kontelj said it was important for candidates to understand the importance of aged care.
Greater Geelong Mayor Stretch Kontelj OAM:
Changes to the Aged Care Act by the Commonwealth Government, which take effect from 1 July have put us in this difficult position.Council has listened to the community, and we've heard loud and clear about how much they value our in-home community care service.
The changes from the Commonwealth Government have created funding uncertainty, and we would need to invest considerably to continue our operations, including upgrades to our IT systems to ensure compliance.
We have engaged with the relevant federal department in regard to additional funding to support us to continue to provide the service, but to date those discussions have been disappointing.
Without additional funding to support our transition to comply with the reforms, Council will be required to find several millions of dollars per annum out of operations to subsidise the ongoing provision of aged care services.
The community has told us that they want certainty in the aged care space, and we agree – that's why we're calling on the Commonwealth Government to commit to aged care by providing the additional funding.
We can't do this alone, and we need bipartisan support for certainty in aged care funding
Consultation about the future of the City's in-home community care service is ongoing, ahead of a Council decision which will determine the City's future role in the sector.
