Darren Chester (Gippsland, National Party, Shadow Minister for Veterans’ Affairs) | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Aged Care and Seniors. Older Australians are dying on the waiting list for Support at Home packages. Does the minister take any responsibility for the more than 4,800 older Australians who were deemed eligible for support but died in the past 12 months waiting to receive appropriate home care?

Sam Rae (Hawke, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Aged Care and Seniors) | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Gippsland for his question. He engages regularly with my office in advocacy around members across his community and their access to aged care. It is always incredibly distressing for families and, of course, for the community more broadly when people pass away—or indeed die—in circumstances where they aren't provided appropriate care. The Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety examined these issues in great detail and provided recommendations that provided a pathway to the bipartisan approach that this parliament has taken to improving the way that we provide care both in a residential setting and, of course, in regards to the new Support at Home program that was passed through this parliament in the Aged Care Act and began on 1 November.

There is more work to be done. There's no doubt about that. But we are seeing unprecedented demand for aged-care services. I've discussed that many times in this parliament. We released a report on Sunday that showed that waiting times to access home care under the Support at Home program are decreasing across the board. This is a significant step forward and cause for optimism about the way that this is heading. Again, our government is utterly committed to ensuring that every older Australian can get the high-quality, dignified aged care that they deserve. We will continue to work day in and day out to make sure that those waiting times continue to come down and that we get the care to people that they deserve.