Santo Santoro (Queensland, Liberal Party, Minister for Ageing) Share this | Hansard source

in reply—I table a supplementary explanatory memorandum. I have appreciated listening to the contributions of all senators in relation to the Aged Care Amendment (Residential Care) Bill 2006. This legislation will make amendments to the Aged Care Act 1997. In the 2006-07 federal budget the coalition government announced that it would bring the treatment of assets for aged-care purposes into line with its treatment for pension purposes in relation to limits on the gifting of assets and the concessional treatment of complying income streams. The legislation gives effect to these changes and will enable Centrelink and the Department of Veterans’ Affairs to streamline their systems so that they no longer have to assess gifted assets differently when they undertake aged-care assets assessments on behalf of the Department of Health and Ageing. This will prevent a pensioner who has been assessed as eligible for residential aged care from gifting away most of their assets before entering care and thereby avoiding paying an accommodation payment and becoming eligible for the government’s concessional resident supplement.

From September 2007, the treatment of income streams purchased on or after 20 September 2007 will also be aligned. Income streams purchased prior to 20 September 2007 will continue to enjoy the 100 per cent exemption from the aged-care assets test that currently applies. Residents and prospective residents will be better placed to make decisions about their care needs as a result of these changes because they will have greater certainty about their financial situation and status prior to entry. This legislation will also remove uncertainty about the powers that aged-care assessment teams possess in approving extensions to residential respite care. The legislation will allow the secretary of the Department of Health and Ageing to, where there is a need to do so, delegate to ACAT delegates the power to increase the maximum number of days allowed by a period of 21 days.

This legislation further delivers on initiatives in the 2004-05 Investing in Australia’s Aged Care: More Places, Better Care package to streamline administration for better care. This demonstrates the coalition government’s strong commitment to ensuring a robust and viable aged-care sector into the future providing high quality and affordable care to older Australians.

As I said, I have enjoyed the contributions from all honourable senators. In particular, I thank the opposition for their indication of support for the amendments that are before the Senate here this evening. I would like to respond in some detail to all of the contributions made by honourable senators. I will commence with some responses to Senator McLucas’s proposed amendment. I am happy to elaborate further after she speaks if she chooses to do so. Senator McLucas suggested that the bill be amended so that it requires every residential aged-care facility to be subject to one unannounced support contact by the Aged Care Standards and Accreditation Agency. The agency will in 2006-07 conduct no less than 5,200 visits to aged-care homes, of which 3,000 will be spot checks. Under the changes that I announced in July 2006, the agency is required to maintain an average visiting schedule of 1.75 visits per home per year. I can assure Senator McLucas that the intent of part of her amendment will certainly be fulfilled by the accreditation agency.

Senator McLucas’s amendment also seeks to implement a rule such that residential aged-care facilities must not be given any prior notice of support contact visits. I can advise Senator McLucas that the current legislation states that the approved provider must be given written notice in advance of any support contact visit or audit. This can range from five minutes to five days. The accreditation agency will continue to exercise reasonable discretion in terms of the amount of notice that is given to providers. If it is meant to be very short-term notice, that is the notice that will be provided.

Senator McLucas, through her amendment, also wants assessment teams conducting the support contacts to have to assess the facility against all quality outcomes of the aged-care standards of the accreditation agency. Senator McLucas knows that the current system consists of a full site audit every three years, with support contact visits or spot checks in between. If Senator McLucas in her continuing consultations with the industry raises this issue, she will be informed that a full audit is extremely disruptive for an aged-care home.

A spot check is designed to focus on areas that may have been identified either in previous reviews or through other avenues. Agency support contact visits assess whether or not an audit is justified or warranted. It can be a means by which the necessity for a full review is found to be warranted, and that can then be conducted. Support contact visits do not assess all 44 standards. There are very good reasons for that, as Senator McLucas would appreciate. I am advised, Senator McLucas, that a full site audit can take up to five days with up to five staff for a large home, and can be very disruptive for the orderly and effective management of an aged-care home. In addition, I have been informed that a full site audit can cost around $10,000 on average. If we were to do this for all homes on an annual basis, that would cost the industry an additional $21 million per year. And that is quite separate from the disruption that I have just mentioned. I believe that the current system as it stands is efficient and appropriate and does not use a sledgehammer to crack a nut, as Senator Barnett said earlier during this debate.

In her remarks, Senator McLucas also stated that the committee inquiry recommended passing the bill in its entirety without amendment. With all due respect to Senator McLucas and the amendment which will be before the chamber tonight, the committee agreed to pass the bill without amendment and here we will be considering an amendment by her.