Louise Miller-Frost (Boothby, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) notes:

(a) that on 1 November, the Government's once-in-a-generation reforms to aged care began, giving more older Australians and their loved ones better access to a system that puts safe, high quality and dignified care at its core; and

(b) the Aged Care Act 2024 and related reforms deliver a range of improvements to ensure older people and their needs are at the centre of the new aged care system including:

(i) strengthened aged care quality standards;

(ii) a statement of rights;

(iii) a new model for supported decision-making; and

(iv) introducing the Support at Home program to help older Australians remain in their homes for longer; and

(2) acknowledges that the commencement of the Aged Care Act 2024 is the next step in the Government's aged care reforms, which has already included:

(a) the introduction of star ratings;

(b) more direct care for over 250,000 older people in aged care homes;

(c) 24-hours, seven days a week nursing in aged care homes;

(d) higher wages for aged care workers;

(e) a new single assessment system; and

(f) more transparency on provider finances and operations.

When the Albanese government was elected, one of our priorities was fixing the broken aged-care system. Nothing explained better how broken aged care was than the 2019 interim report from the royal commission into aged care, entitled simply Neglect. The royal commission final report was delivered two years later, in March 2021, and woefully little was done to address the catalogue of horror stories the royal commission had heard. By mid-2022, the previous coalition government had responded to fewer than 10 of the 148 recommendations.

We all heard the heartbreaking stories the royal commission was told of how older people—our parents, our grandparents, our neighbours and our friends—had been treated, and this government was the one to stand up and say that we can and must do better

The New Aged Care Act, which came into force over the weekend, responds to 58 of the 148 recommendations. This means that this Albanese government will have now responded in part or in full to 103 of the royal commission's recommendations, and, of course, the work continues. These generational reforms to aged care are really important for every older Australian and their families, carers and providers. Australia has an ageing population, and we know that there will be increased demand on the aged-care system. We owe it to every older Australian to ensure that, when they need aged care, it will be there for them.

Over the past three years, we have already introduced some very important improvements to the sector. We mandated 24/7 registered nursing in every nursing home, delivering more care minutes to residents. There is now a registered nurse on site in aged care more than 99 per cent of the time, delivering more direct care for over 250,000 older Australians. Our reforms are giving older Australians 7.1 million additional minutes of care every single day compared to under the last government. This is a great initiative to keep people healthy in their nursing home, their home, and also to avoid inappropriate transfers to hospital EDs for minor ailments and injuries.

We have already invested $17.7 billion to increase the wages of aged-care workers. Ultimately, the care you receive in a nursing home or aged-care facility is a direct product of the quality of the staffing. This government values the critical role workers play in this sector. We want aged care to be a career of choice, attracting and retaining quality workers who love providing care to other humans, who love aged care. Too often we heard that good carers and nurses were having to leave the sector because they couldn't afford their mortgage on aged-care wages or because they could get better pay somewhere else. Increases in aged-care workers' wages means they can pursue the career they love in the aged-care sector, providing quality care to residents.

Most importantly, we've improved the standard of care. In December 2023, only 54 per cent of aged-care homes had an overall star rating of four or five stars, which is good or excellent. Today, 79 per cent of homes do. Thanks to our reforms, older Australians are now receiving more care and better quality care under Labor. Now the New Aged Care Act is underway, we'll continue to make sure residential aged care is meeting the demand of an ageing Australian population and delivering truly equitable, sustainable and high-quality care. We know people want to stay at home, and the new act is making sure that they can do that with dignity, safety and quality support. But, when they need extra care, we'll make sure a bed is there for them.

And it's important to note that the new act isn't just more of the status quo; it's better care for more older Australians. It puts them at the centre of their decision-making. It's a rights based framework. The act's statement of rights makes sure that older people can make decisions about their own lives and have their decisions not just accepted but respected. It's more support at home, including bigger budgets and separate streams for home modifications and assistive technology. And, of course, it's a transformational change in residential care, with places now being delivered to people not homes. This will allow older people and their families to get the care they want where they want it, closer to the people they love.

Older Australians deserve the very best, and that requires transformational change. We'll continue to be responsive to older Australians who need more supports, whether that's specialist memory support services, mental health care or care for those living in regional areas. It's better care for more older Australians that puts them at the centre of their decision-making.

See this speech in context