AGED FUNDING AN ON-GOING ISSUE
The Member for Berowra, Philip Ruddock supports Coalition calls on the Rudd Government to confirm that there will be no cut to aged care funding in the 2009-2010 Budget.
“I call on the Rudd Government to guarantee to older constituents and aged care providers in my electorate that we will not see a repeat of this year’s performance when the Rudd Government back-flipped at the eleventh hour on cutting funding to aged care,” Mr Ruddock said.
The Prime Minister intervened a couple of days before the Budget to ensure that indexation of the Conditional Adjustment Payment Subsidy would continue for one year and announced a Review into the Conditional Adjustment Payment Subsidy.
The Review has attracted almost 70 submissions which have left the Rudd Government in no doubt as to just how serious a situation the aged care industry is in.
At a time when services should be gearing up for the increasing number of elderly people accessing the system, the sector is seeing a large number of providers walk away.
“What is happening is unprecedented. We are seeing liquidations and an under subscription of bed licences and there are 18 nursing homes in my electorate that I care about,” Philip Ruddock said.
“In the past there has been strong competition for licences but now we have providers handing back licences to the Department and the ageing of our population is the biggest social issue that Australia faces and I call on the Rudd Government to address the challenges ahead.”