Ash Ambihaipahar (Barton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the government's reforms to aged care that came into effect over the weekend just passed. Every older Australian deserves the same care and respect they gave this country through a lifetime of work, love and contribution. These long overdue reforms put care and respect back at the heart of the system. Everyone with older loved ones has had to battle with the aged-care system at one point or another. It is a difficult transition period and you find yourself confronted by tough decisions around your loved one's health, home and quality of life. On top of this, we have all heard and lived the horror stories unearthed by the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety. In the words of the commission, the system was delivering substandard and unsafe care for Australians. It was too focused on providers and institutions and not on the rights, preferences and dignity for older Australians.

These reforms build on the good work we have already completed as a government. We've already mandated 24/7 registered nursing. Because of this, there is a registered nurse on site in aged care more than 99 per cent of the time. We've also invested $17.7 billion to increase the wages of aged-care workers. This means that dedicated staff are paid what they deserve and that their deep knowledge of their residents and the care they need stays in the system. We've also 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—that's 'good' or 'excellent'. Today, 79 per cent of homes do. These new reforms build on this work and further the fight to deliver rights based, dignified aged care for every older Australian.

These reforms include three key changes. Firstly, they introduce a rights based framework. The statement of rights makes sure that older people can make their own decisions about their own lives and have those decisions respected. The statement includes the right for every person to have independence, autonomy, empowerment and freedom of choice, quality and safe funded services, respect for privacy and person centred communication. The Older Persons Advocacy Network calls this reform a 'historic moment' in aged care.

I particularly want to speak to putting older Australians at the centre of decision-making and empowering their choices. Since becoming the member for Barton, I've had many constituents contact my office requesting help with navigating the system. I want to speak to these examples but will change their names to protect their privacy. Paul contacted my office because he had approved level 3 funding in October 2024 but still had not seen that funding flow through by October 2025. Khalid reached out because he believed his case had been given a priority status but had not been able to get a new assessment. In both of these cases, these constituents felt like they were not being listened to when reaching out for help and that their requests had been ignored. Whilst I'm happy to help in these situations, a constituent should not have to get their local MP involved just to exercise their rights. In the first instance, both Paul and Khalid's requests should have been listened to, respected and actioned. This new rights based framework enshrines their voices and wishes in the act. Whilst I'll always be here to support those people, this means that older residents of Barton will be listened to and their choices respected from the get-go. That's what this reform this really about: restoring respect and giving back agency to the people who have given so much to all of us.

On top of this, our reforms also increase support at home. We recognise that many would rather stay in their home than move into assisted living facilities. These reforms will help more people to do that. From bigger budgets to separate streams for home modifications and assistive technology, the new program will deliver a high quality of care to residents in their homes.

Finally, we are delivering extra places to people who do need to transition into residential care. Places will now be directly assigned to older people who have been approved for government funded residential care services. Accordingly, mainstream residential aged-care providers will no longer need an allocation of places. Instead, residents will have more choice and control over which provider delivers their services. This is what good reform looks like: a system that listens, respects and delivers for the Australians who built this country.

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