Katie Allen (Higgins, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Just like the rest of the developed world, the Australian population is steadily getting older. In 1977, nine per cent of our population was over 65 years. In 2017, that proportion grew to 15 per cent. In another 40 years, it's predicted to be 22 per cent. That is something that I learnt about in medical school and it is something that we've been preparing for as a community and as a society. The demographic of those people entering residential care has substantially changed and, as a result, so too has the aged-care sector. Advances in medicine, high-quality diets and lifestyles, and the success of the home-care packages introduced by our government, the Morrison government, has meant, paradoxically, that the aged-care residential population is getting older and frailer so it is more difficult to care for those people in these situations. In fact, half of those entering care will only be there for two years. The Morrison government recognises the complexities associated with the changing profile of those in residential aged care and we are committed to delivering quality care for our senior Australians.

This bill is an important additional step towards the delivery of an improved residential aged-care sector now and into the future. The existing model for funding aged-care residential services using the Aged Care Funding Instrument, ACFI, has been in place for over a decade. Substantial changes in the demographic of those in residential aged care, as I've explained in this time, has meant that the Department of Health and care providers have experienced funding uncertainty and inequity in recent years. Studies have concluded that the ACFI no longer satisfactorily discriminates between residents in terms of what drives the cost of delivering care. We, therefore, need to improve our system to be better tailored to the needs and wellbeing of our ageing population, and this bill does just that.

I know firsthand the journey many Australians and their families have through the aged-care sector. My father—a doctor himself—suffered a heartbreaking deterioration in his later years at the hands of Alzheimer's. He started off with in-home care, then aged care, then a high-care residential facility and, finally, high-acuity care in a residential setting. It was a long and torturous journey but one that was supported by the system. In line with my father's condition, each of these stages involved varying degrees of care, medical attention and personnel, and, ultimately, costs.

This bill establishes a more efficient, stable and contemporary procedure to classify residents of residential aged care. The bill empowers the secretary of the Department of Health to assess care recipients using a new assessment tool called the Australian National Aged Care Classification and to process assessment results to assign new classification levels. This will allow the option to independently assess the relative care needs of individuals in residential aged care.

This bill follows the successful assessment tool trial, which was conducted in 2019 and early 2020, involving over 150 aged-care homes around the country. This is a very important component of the development of this bill. It's about engaging with the sector and ensuring that, as a trial, this has worked.

This assessment tool was developed by the University of Wollongong as part of the resource utilisation and classification study. The overall aims of this study were to identify the clinical needs and characteristics of aged-care residents that influenced the cost of care; identify the proportion of care costs that on average are shared across residents, relative to the costs associated with the individual needs; develop, importantly, a case mix classification based on identified cost drivers that underpin a funding model that recognises both shared and individual costs; and test the feasibility of implementing the recommended classification and funding model across the Australian residential aged-care sector.

The RUCS reported that the ANACC is designed to capture the core attributes that drive the care costs in residential aged care, so we're hearing from the sector on this. The ANACC comprises of 13 classes and explains 50 per cent of the variance in costs of individual residential care. There's a fivefold variation in cost between the least and the most expensive ANACC classes. This change to this bill will better inform funding arrangements and ultimately care for our senior Australians.

The clinical assessment tool that underpins this ANACC can be readily understood and administered by an external clinical assessor. These assessors will have to meet strict professional qualification and additional training criteria. Funding for the assessors was announced by the Treasurer in the Morrison government's budget earlier this year.

This bill now actively responds to criticisms from care providers, statutory authorities and academic researchers of how care recipients are currently classified, which is now considered outdated. It is also an essential step in preparing to respond to the findings of the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank our important aged-care sector workers. They've had a tough year on the front line, and particularly in my home state of Victoria, with the COVID pandemic. Within my own electorate of Higgins there are 21 aged-care facilities, and I'm very proud of the hard work and dedication from employees and the teams, administrators and CEOs of these facilities, with which I've been in regular contact throughout the COVID pandemic. Their work does not go unnoticed, and it is very important to acknowledge that many dedicated individuals have made an enormous difference to loved ones in their twilight years through their comfort and care.

I'm thoroughly looking forward to visiting these facilities in person again. I've got a whole lot of visits lined up next week, now that we're finally lifting our restrictions. Last year I took shortbreads around to my local residents in aged-care facilities, and I've been asked whether I will be doing the same thing again. Yes, I am—but with a COVID-safe approach. It lights up their eyes to have a visit with some shortbread and some Christmas cheer. A big shout-out to the residents of the aged-care facilities in Higgins.

In closing: the Morrison government has delivered, throughout a very difficult COVID pandemic. As a doctor myself, I am very passionate about delivering the best health care and outcomes for all Australians but, more importantly, for our ageing citizens, who've done so much to build this great country. I'd like to thank them for the work they have done through the years and tell them that we are continuing to support them in their twilight years. This is an incredibly important bill to support.

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