Federal MP for Mayo Rebekha Sharkie is urging the federal government to honour its promise to 'fix the aged care crisis', by committing more funds to aged care at home in next month's federal budget.

Ms Sharkie says her constituents are experiencing long delays in accessing supports to remain independent, and age at home. 

Graduated age care supports target older Australians who need assistance to stay in their homes, rather than moving into residential aged care. 

The two main forms of aged care at home are the Commonwealth Home Support Program (CHSP) and Home Care Packages.

Ms Sharkie says the majority of support at home is provided via lower cost, basic CHSP services such as gardening, cleaning, home maintenance, equipment and aids. 

CHSP is often approved to provide supports while a person is waiting for their first Home Care Package, or as a top up while waiting to transition to a higher level Home Care Package. 

However, in many regional parts of Mayo, the delay experienced in finding a CHSP provider exceeds the wait for a Home Care Package, according to Ms Sharkie.

After hearing from many distressed constituents over the last year, Ms Sharkie is calling on the government to fund 80,000 additional Home Care Packages over the next three financial years from, to meet the growing unmet care needs of older Australians. 

She is also calling for an increase in CHSP funding, as well as measures to address the lack of aged care services in regional, rural and remote areas. 

“I haven’t seen this volume of calls and emails from constituents waiting for home care since the announcing of the Royal Commission.

“Labor campaigned in the last election to put ‘care’ back into aged care, yet waiting periods are worse now than two years ago when they came to Government.”

“I expect the reason is lurking in the pages of the 2023-24 Federal Budget. 

“Last year's Budget contained funding for only an extra 9,500 Home Care Packages, whereas the former Government's previous two Budgets committed an extra 40,000 packages per year. We are seeing the legacy of that lack of funding now with people desperate for support and left wanting.

“Waiting times are too long, causing stress amongst our most vulnerable in our community, and sadly in many cases the intended recipient passes away before the care is provided.”

“My electorate of Mayo has the oldest demographic of any electorate in the state, with 42,398 residents aged over 65 years in 2021, up from 23,939 in 2011. 

“Aged Care at home matters, and it makes sense socially and economically. Most older Australians want to stay independent for as long as possible, and care at home is less costly for individuals and the taxpayer than residential care. 

“A lack of support at home can contribute to ill-health and falls, which impact other parts of the aged care system, as well as our health and hospital systems, if issues become acute “