In-home aged care’s administration fees to be capped amid gouging fears

Exclusive: Charges for switching packages also to be banned as care advocates welcome government’s changes

Administration fees for in-home aged care packages will be capped under new federal reforms, after concerns some providers are “gouging” clients with charges of up to 60%.

Aged care advocates have welcomed the change, saying some providers were overcharging or using inefficient practices, and that more transparency on pricing would further lower prices.

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Covid-19 case numbers exploding across Australia as fourth wave takes off

Chief health officers urge people to take up protective measures as Covid hospitalisations double in some states

The number of active Covid cases has exploded across the country as Australia enters its fourth wave, prompting renewed warnings to protect vulnerable aged care residents.

Jurisdictions collectively recorded more than 58,000 new cases of Covid in the past week, with some states reporting a doubling in the number of people hospitalised with the virus.

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Australia’s aged care workers win 15% pay rise and minister says it’s the ‘first step’

Fair Work Commission accepts that ‘feminised industries’ such as care work have been ‘historically undervalued’

Australia’s aged care workers have won a 15% pay rise, with the possibility of more to come, after the Fair Work Commission accepted the sector’s employees were underpaid.

The full bench of the FWC announced its interim decision on Friday afternoon, having accepted the expert evidence that “feminised industries” including care work “has been historically undervalued and the reason for that undervaluation is likely to be gender-based”.

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Dutton says he was not aware of Morrison’s secret ministries – as it happened

Ed Husic pushes for ‘brain regain’

Industry minister Ed Husic will this week host a series of five roundtable meetings with science and technology leaders in the lead-up to the federal government’s jobs summit, in a bid to kickstart what he called “brain regain” – attracting Australia’s bright minds working overseas to return home, to combat the so-called “brain drain”.

These discussions will also include ways to increase the representation of women and people of diverse backgrounds in skilled occupations. One of my priorities is on “brain regain” – encouraging Australian researchers and innovators to return home. I am interested to hear ideas on how this can be best achieved.

I can’t emphasise strongly enough that this is the start of engagement with these industry sectors. After the jobs and skills summit I will continue the work with industry leaders to ensure we apply practical solutions to accelerate Australia’s pathway to high-skilled, high-value economy.

He’s applied for a job and that’s coming with a significant degree of scrutiny, as it should do. That’s part of the territory if you’re going to put yourself forward for those roles.

If he felt the need to protect the environment from offshore drilling for gas off Sydney’s northern beaches and he felt he needed to swear himself in as minister, that’s something I support.

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Covid may have peaked in Australia’s aged care workforce after cases doubled in July

Cases now falling among staff and residents but nurses union says preparation for next wave should start immediately

The number of active Covid cases in the aged care workforce doubled in a single month in July, placing a huge burden on an already overstretched workforce.

Analysis of recent Covid data shows a rapid and sharp increase in case numbers among aged care staff as the current Omicron wave peaked in the sector at the end of July.

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Labor to advocate for ‘significant’ pay rise for Australia’s aged care sector, Anika Wells says

Albanese government says it is committed to pay for any increase ordered by Fair Work Commission, with unions calling for 25%

The Albanese government will advocate for a “significant, meaningful” pay rise for workers in the aged care sector, according to the aged care minister, Anika Wells.

The comments on Sunday come ahead of a submission from the federal government to the Fair Work Commission case considering unions’ call for a 25% pay rise to reflect the increased value of aged care work.

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Aged care reform first bill to pass lower house under Albanese government

Legislation enacting royal commission’s recommendations for sector expected to pass parliament despite opposition’s accusation of ‘playing politics’

The aged care sector has urged the new federal parliament to quickly pass delayed legislation enacting key recommendations of the royal commission, saying residents “can’t afford to wait any longer” for reforms around new funding, governance and conduct of staff.

A bill legislating the royal commission’s recommendations was the first to pass the House of Representatives and expected to easily and rapidly pass through the parliament. The Labor government is also calling on the Coalition opposition to back some of its central election promises, including mandating nurses in aged care facilities on a 24/7 basis.

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Aged care sector warns ADF assistance not enough to address ‘stark’ staff shortages

Unions and providers welcome one-month extension of workforce support but say tens of thousands of aged care workers unavailable

The aged care sector has warned that a pledge of additional military assistance will not be enough to solve the “stark” staff shortages linked to the current Covid-19 wave, which has seen the number of active outbreaks and the weekly death toll nearly double in a single month.

The federal government announced overnight it would extend Australian defence force support for aged care from its previous August endpoint until the end of September, plus boost the available military workforce by more than 200 personnel to help the sector cope with the current Omicron wave.

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Covid hits a third of Australia’s aged care homes as 6,000 residents infected

Providers call for urgent support as 3,400 staff infected in 1,013 facilities and fears two-thirds of homes could soon have outbreaks

Aged care providers are calling for urgent action to protect residents and staff from a winter Covid-19 wave which is hitting more than one-third of the country’s facilities.

The Aged and Community Care Providers Association said 6,000 residents and 3,400 staff were infected in 1,013 facilities as of Thursday.

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Woman jailed for attempting to suffocate father in Queensland aged care home

Rebecca Burden was visiting her brain-injured dad for the first time in six months when she says he asked her to kill him

A Brisbane woman has been jailed for at least 10 months after admitting a lapse of judgment when she tried to suffocate her brain-injured father.

Rebecca Louise Burden was visiting 68-year-old Steven Burden for the first time she was permitted after Covid-19 restrictions lifted at his aged care home when she says he asked her to kill him.

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Covid deaths in aged care reach almost 100 a week as active cases surge across Australia

Rising case numbers and death rates prompt fears that two-thirds of providers could be grappling with outbreaks in next six weeks

Almost 100 aged care residents are dying from Covid each week with active cases linked to the more than 700 current outbreaks in facilities reaching near-record levels for 2022, data shows.

An analysis of government data on Covid in aged care shows a worrying surge in the weekly number of deaths, number of active outbreaks, and cases among residents.

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Australia’s aged care homes urged to speed up fourth-dose Covid boosters as outbreaks and deaths rise

Federal ministers Mark Butler and Anika Wells warn providers with low vaccination rates will have to explain themselves

Ministers Mark Butler and Anika Wells have told aged care providers to act “with a sense of urgency” and speed up their fourth-dose Covid vaccinations as the sector continues to grapple with almost 700 outbreaks and a growing death toll.

The aged care ministers have also warned providers with low vaccination rates they would be required to explain themselves and show how they would turn around sluggish booster rates.

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‘Shocking’ rate of sexual abuse against aged care residents barely changed since royal commission

Peak rights group for older Australians demands urgent change after 530 incidents of sexual abuse reported in last quarter of 2021

More than 500 cases of sexual abuse against aged care residents were reported in the last three months of 2021, a rate largely unchanged since the royal commission dubbed the prevalence of sexual crimes in residential care a “source of national shame”.

Experts say victims, many of whom live with dementia, are still being failed by systems not equipped to recognise or respond to crimes against those with serious cognitive impairment.

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Australian federal election 2022 live: Plibersek says Albanese has a ‘tough job’ as polls tighten

AEC concedes some Covid-positive Australians ‘may not be able to vote’: prime minister responds after Labor announces policy costings; Covid and illness lead to drop in working hours; nation records at least 52 Covid deaths. Follow all the day’s developments live

Scott and Jenny Morrison are visiting Whitemore in the Labor-held electorate of Lyons in Tasmania this morning.

Brian Mitchell holds Lyons on a margin of 5.2%, although his buffer was inflated by the disendorsement of his Liberal opponent mid-campaign in 2019 for anti-Islamic social media posts. Morrison is still on the offence, seeking gains to offset expected losses elsewhere.

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Over 70% of Australia’s aged care workers yet to receive $800 pandemic bonus, poll suggests

Union poll finds majority of members have not yet received any payment as aged care peak body says both parties fall short on policy

More than 70% of aged care workers are yet to receive a single payment through the Morrison government’s pandemic bonus scheme four months after it was announced, staff polling suggests.

The prime minister, Scott Morrison, announced in January up to $800 would be made available to aged care workers through a bonus scheme designed to recognise their efforts in the pandemic and stem the loss of workers from the sector.

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More regional aged care homes to close unless government funds pay rise, experts say

With around two-thirds of regional nursing homes operating at a loss, industry says ‘the crisis is upon us, but it’s going to get worse’

Many more rural Australians may have no choice but to spend their final years away from their families and communities given two-thirds of regional aged care homes are operating at a loss.

Closures are already happening and will accelerate if the next federal government fails to properly fund a pay rise for aged care workers, experts say.

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Thousands of shocking reports reveal extent of Australian aged care residents’ suffering due to understaffing

More than 6,500 reports of distressed and neglected residents and unsafe conditions the ‘tip of the iceberg’, union says

More than 6,500 reports of understaffing and unsafe conditions in Australia’s aged care sector, including hundreds of reports of resident injuries, will be handed to the regulator on Wednesday.

The reports, from United Workers Union (UWU) whistleblower site Aged Care Watch, identified thousands of instances of aged care residents’ safety suffering due to unfilled shifts and understaffing.

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Aged care sector questions Coalition claim home care workforce has grown by almost 15%

Providers say they continue to face severe staffing challenges and ‘are not aware of any data that reflects this level of growth’

The aged care sector has questioned the Coalition’s claims that the home care workforce has increased by almost 15% in a matter of months, saying the figures appear at odds with the “severe staffing challenges” it is experiencing.

Aged care providers have repeatedly warned of the staffing crisis facing the sector, including in critically important home care services, where staffing issues have compromised the ability to provide some forms of support to older Australians in their own home.

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Broken Hill nursing home bracing for ‘worst-case scenario’ after four residents die from Covid

Nurses are being flown in from interstate amid staffing shortage after 30 positive cases reported, including inside the Alzheimer’s unit

Nurses are being flown in from interstate to ease staffing shortages at a far western New South Wales aged care facility where four residents have died with Covid over the past fortnight.

The fourth death at St Anne’s in Broken Hill was confirmed on Wednesday after the outbreak first hit the facility in late March, with 30 people so far testing positive.

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Aged care sector calls for funding detail on election commitments

Major parties urged to spell out more policy and make system sustainable, as Anglicare launches wage-rise campaign for carers

Health advocates have welcomed the elevation of aged care as a headline issue early in the federal election campaign, backing Labor’s policy pledges but warning that changes could have “unintended consequences” without further consultation.

One leading aged care voice has challenged both major parties to outline exactly how they plan to fund the sector against the backdrop of an ageing Australian population, claiming current rules would see the pay of nursing home staff go backwards this year.

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