Andrew Wallace (Fisher, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Hindmarsh for proposing this motion and for giving us the opportunity to debate this very important policy area. I don't doubt that the intentions behind the last government's reforms were good. I know that members on both sides of the House have earnestly sought solutions to the growing challenge of an ageing population. However, the approach behind that policy—that is, the policy of the previous government, the Labor government—was flawed and failed to reflect the real change in the lifestyles and expectations of contemporary Australians.

Australians retiring now have worked to create the information age, and they've come to expect products and services that are tailored to them as individuals. They expect to make their own decisions about their aged care, just as they have made their own choices about the services they receive throughout their adult lives. The coalition government listened to older Australians, respected those expectations, and has responded with policies to increase choice. The government created increased choice in home care reforms, which allows older Australians to direct funding to the aged-care provider of their choice. We've ensured that a person's home care package moves with them, and allows users to change providers if they are unhappy. We developed the My Aged Care online portal to provide a real marketplace, where providers advertise and consumers can find the providers that they're looking for.

However, I know that the rollout of this policy has not been without challenges. I know that in my own electorate of Fisher there are individuals who are waiting too long to get access to the packages that they need. I'm actively engaged in pursuing the cases of 10 constituents who've contacted me to ask for my help. One of these, Mrs Julie Penlington, has done a great deal in our local community to highlight the importance of this issue and to help others to come forward and get in touch with me. I take this opportunity to thank Julie for her determined efforts in this area. To the constituents and their families who've contacted me, I assure you I am working closely with the government and doing all I can to assist you. I've asked the minister here in the House about their cases and I've met with the minister on several occasions. I thank the minister for the time that he has made to meet with me and to follow up on behalf of those constituents.

I recognise that the minister is working hard to bed down a new system in a challenging fiscal environment. I understand that ACAT assessment waiting times are unusually long in my home state of Queensland. The assessments are conducted by Queensland Health, and unfortunately it appears that in this policy area, as in so many others, the Queensland state Labor government are dragging their feet. There are challenges with ACAT assessments across the country, but it should come as no surprise to anyone that, faced with an obligation shared by all state and territory governments, the Queensland state Labor government perform particularly poorly in this respect. It is unfortunately the case in aged-care-package assessment, just as it is in infrastructure, job creation, tackling high energy prices and so much more. Once again: for my constituents suffering the consequences of the Labor state government's failures in this area, please know that the federal Minister for Aged Care is actively discussing this problem with the Queensland health minister, Cameron Dick, and trying to find ways to improve the situation.

I want to take this opportunity to pass on, again, to my constituents in Fisher two important facts to bear in mind. I want to reassure my constituents that, if their condition worsens and they are hospitalised while awaiting assessment, in hospital they can be assessed within 24 to 48 hours. Secondly, I want to reiterate that while awaiting the delivery of their packages, if offered, people should accept the offer of a lesser interim package to help them during this transition period. These smaller packages are there to help, and accepting them will not extend the time an individual has to wait for their higher-needs package in any way.

There are undoubtedly challenges to overcome in the execution of the government's new aged-care policy—a policy on which this government is spending in excess of $90 billion over the forward estimates. But, whenever a government seeks to introduce a radical reform and to update a universal system, there will always be a number of teething issues.

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