Closing the door to younger people entering aged care – Summer Foundation position statement on the proposed new Aged Care Act
November 2023
Closing the door to younger people entering aged care – Summer Foundation position statement on the proposed new Aged Care Act
Tags: aged care, residential aged care (RAC), YPIRAC
Description:
The Federal Government is developing a new Aged Care Act to replace existing legislation. The Summer Foundation welcomes the proposed change that “apart from First Nations persons, or people at risk of homelessness, no other younger persons will be able to access funded aged care services.”
A sustainable solution to the issue of young people in residential aged care (YPIRAC) requires completely closing the door to aged care for younger people.
These amendments are a vital part of important aged care reforms, as recommended by the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission. Rather than using aged care as the provider of last resort, public money should be put to better use to fix gaps and failures in disability, health and housing service systems and develop alternative pathways that enable people under 65 to live in the community.