Greens candidate for Batman Alex Bhathal today welcomed the release of the Greens aged care policy - Aged Care for the Future – which outlines a plan to meet the immediate needs of Australia’s aged care sector and sets out a comprehensive long-term reform agenda.
“There is a crisis in aged care services in Australia and this includes in Batman. We have an ageing population in Batman and growing demand for services that isn't being met” Ms Bhathal said today.
Launching the policy, Greens Aged Care Spokesperson Senator Rachel Siewert said “We are facing a massive increase in the demand for and cost of aged care in the next 40 years.
“While current policy settings have the demand for aged care services growing by 436% over the next 40 years from $11.1b pa to $59.6b pa in 2050, Access Economics suggest this growth could be in the order of 749%, leading to an annual aged care budget of $94.2b in 2050.
“The Greens believe we need to be proactive – to minimise these future costs and deliver better outcomes and quality of life for ageing Australians," said Senator Siewert.
“The Greens’ plan advocates for an extra $127m to properly index aged care services, $390m investment in community care services to allow older Australians to stay in their homes and communities longer, $100m for better staff wages and conditions, $30m to better support family carers, and $20m for an urgent dementia research program.
“We need fundamental reform of our aged care system to future-proof it, rather than more tinkering around the edges. By focusing on prevention and early intervention to keep people healthy and active, we can act now to mitigate future demand for complex care.
Ms Bhathal said today “The Greens have a detailed plan for reform which will provide immediate assistance to the sector and put the reforms in place to meet greater demand in coming decades. This policy will bring benefits to elderly people and their families across Batman”.
The Greens’ Aged Care for the Future policy also calls for:
• Increased funding and realistic indexation for aged care
• Increased funding and integration of community care
• Better wages and conditions for all aged care staff
• Greater support for informal and family care and for care volunteers
• Investment in dementia research
• A single national funder for all aged care services
• A consumer-directed funding model
• An Independent National Aged Care Authority