PCA welcomes the publication of the draft Aged Care Act Rules, Support at Home Funding. This section of the Rules contains important information about Support at Home funding arrangements including subsidies, individual contributions and means testing. In this brief submission PCA identifies opportunities to ensure the Rules support the right to equitable palliative care and end-of-life care for all people using or seeking Commonwealth-funded aged care services, set out in the new Aged Care Act.

We make four recommendations, namely that:

• The Department of Health and Aged Care engage with the palliative care and aged care sectors, to develop detailed operational guidance to support implementation of the short-term End-of-Life Pathway from 1 July 2024;
• Independent evaluation of the End-of-Life Pathway take place at one year from commencement.
• An additional supplement payment for complex nursing care be included in the new Act’s legislative framework.
• A needs-based rather than diagnosis-based approach to eligibility for assistive technology supports be adopted in the Rules.

Aged Care Act Rules - Support at Home Funding, PCA Submission.pdf