Aged care reforms fall short of Royal Commission’s vision, Inspector-General warns

The Inspector General of Aged Care, Natalie Siegel-Brown, has raised concerns that the Australian Government’s aged care reforms are not delivering the transformative overhaul envisioned by the 2021 Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety.

In a recent interview, Siegel-Brown highlighted that while the new Aged Care Act, set to take effect on 1 November, mandates significant change, the reforms largely tinker with the existing system rather than achieving the “paradigm shift” the Royal Commission called for.

“There has been a lot of reform activity by government in response to the Royal Commission, but for the majority of reforms, what we’re seeing is a lot of changes to the existing system,” Siegel-Brown said. “The transformation of the system that the new legislation requires, it’s just not there yet.”

The Inspector General’s report warns that the reforms may fail to contain taxpayer costs and could lead to unintended consequences, such as vulnerable Australians, particularly full pensioners, forgoing critical care due to a new co-payment structure for home care packages.

“My concern is the way in which these co-payments are structured might actually mean they forego critical care or some of the necessities in their lives,” she noted.

While some positive changes have occurred since the Royal Commission’s 2021 report, Siegel-Brown said aged care residents are yet to experience the significant shifts promised. The announcement of 20,000 additional home care packages was met with enthusiasm, with Siegel-Brown describing it as a “welcome change.” However, she cautioned that deeper systemic issues remain unaddressed, and lengthy delays in accessing these packages have left thousands of Australians waiting.

The Inspector General rejected the notion that the challenges of an ageing population and rising demand are intractable. She pointed to international examples where community-focused care has successfully reduced decline and eased pressure on funding.

“If you really focus your energies on those things that keep older people visible and connected to their societies, you can prevent a lot of decline, which puts the greatest impost on the funding bucket for aged care,” she said.

Siegel-Brown stressed that the government’s reforms have not yet had the collective impact expected four years on from the Royal Commission.

However, she remains optimistic, urging a return to “first principles” to achieve the new Act’s goals of kindness, compassion, and dignity.

“I really do believe that the government and I share the same vision that is contained in this new Aged Care Act,” she said. “There’s a lot of benefit in us working together here.”