Aged care news highlights from the week ending 4 November 2022, aggregated by CompliSpace.

The information in the Weekly Wrap is aggregated from other news sources to provide you with news that is relevant to the aged care sector across Australia and worldwide. Each paragraph is a summary of the subject matter covered in the particular news article. The information does not necessarily reflect the views of CompliSpace.

COVID-19 News

Grant Opportunity: Aged Care Infection Prevention and Control Training

According to the Department of Health and Aged Care, a grant opportunity is opening soon, to support registered and enrolled nurses in residential aged care to complete specialist Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) training.

More information is available in the Forecast Opportunity (P3340) on GrantConnect.

Expanded eligibility and quicker access to COVID-19 oral antiviral treatments

According to the Department of Health and Aged Care, eligibility for Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) access to COVID-19 oral antiviral treatments, Lagevrio® (molnupiravir) and Paxlovid® (nirmatrelvir and ritonavir) has widened and commenced on 1 November 2022. Medical practitioners and nurse practitioners will be able to add Lagevrio^® and Paxlovid^® to their Prescriber Bag supplies. A complete list of current Prescriber Bag medicines is available on the PBS website.

Additional information can be found in the Covid-19 fact sheets.

ACIPC conference 2022

According to the Department of Health and Aged Care, the Australasian College for Infection Prevention and Control is hosting a workshop Infection Prevention and Control in Residential Aged Care Facilities on Sunday, 13 November 2022 from 10 am to 6 pm (AEDT) live in Sydney or online. The College has offered complimentary online registration for Aged Care IPC Leads.

For more information and to view the full program, visit: acipcconference.com.au/2022-program.

IPC Leads can register using the following link: cdesign.eventsair.com/acipc2022/workshop.

Other News

Fair Work Commission has ruled pay rise for aged care workers is plainly justified

According to Inside Ageing, aged care workers will receive a pay rise of 15 per cent after the Fair Work Commission (FWC) handed down an interim decision on Friday, that also left the door open for further increases. The timing of the interim increase will be dealt with in Stage 2 of proceedings, which is listed for 22 November 2022.

The next stages of the hearings will take submissions from employers and the government who have previously cited Treasury estimates suggesting a 25 per cent increase in the pay for aged care workers could increase workforce numbers by 5-10 per cent, potentially adding around 36,000 workers to the sector.

Stage 3 of the FWC hearings will deal with the potential of further increases, including those job classifications not covered by the 15 per cent interim pay deal.

Aged care body raises concerns over industrial relations bill

According to Inside Ageing, the Federal Government’s 249-page Secure Jobs, Better Pay Bill recently introduced to Parliament has raised concern with employer groups, including the Aged & Community Care Providers Assoc (ACCPA) who have questioned the timeline for consultation given interested parties need to make their submissions by November 11.

In a recent statement, “ACCPA is currently undertaking a detailed review of the legislation and plans to consult its members as soon as possible”.

The workplace relations minister, Tony Burke has said that the door is open to amendments as part of the consultation process.

Important update: Residential aged care quarterly review of fees

According to the Department of Health and Aged Care, Services Australia’s quarterly review of residential fees was run on 28 October 2022. Services Australia is in the process of sending care recipients and providers letters to advise if there are changes to fees or if a refund may be due. It is important to review these letters thoroughly as changes to fees will take effect from the date advised in the letter.

Information on the Residential Care quarterly review is available on the Services Australia website.

Updated advice for NSW home and community aged care providers responding to emergencies

According to the Department of Health and Aged Care, to clarify the NSW state emergency pathways to request help promoted in their previous message on responding to emergencies for home and community aged care providers:

All aged care providers are required to continue to deliver appropriate care in accordance with their emergency risk management plan, their relevant aged care program, and to provide regular advice to staff, family and care recipients. Care recipient safety must be prioritised at all times.

To make sure appropriate support is provided as quickly as possible, aged care providers, care recipients and their families or representatives should follow the NSW government pathways to request help:

• In New South Wales
  • Dial Triple Zero (000) for Police, Fire and Ambulance in an emergency
  • Call NSW State Emergency Services via 132 500 for help relating to floods and storms including damaged roofs, rising flood water, trees fallen on buildings, or storm damage.

For life-threatening situations, Triple Zero (000) should always be called for police, fire or ambulance.

Review of Medicare Integrity and Compliance

According to the Department of Health and Aged Care, the Minister for Health and Aged Care has requested an independent, high-level review of the Integrity of Medicare and the compliance mechanisms. The review will focus primarily on the Medical Benefits Scheme.

Draft provider governance legislation released

According to the Department of Health and Aged Care, as part of the Aged Care and Other Legislation Amendment (Royal Commission Response) Act 2022, changes to provider governance and reporting requirements will commence from 1 December 2022. These changes will apply to Australian Government-funded aged care providers of residential care, home care and flexible care. To help providers prepare for these changes, the Department has published the exposure draft and explanatory statement of the proposed Aged Care Legislation Amendment (Governance and Reporting for Approved Providers) Principles 2022.

Email comments on the draft legislation to ProviderGovernance@health.gov.au by 5pm AEDT on Sunday 13 November.

Find further information on the Stronger provider governance in aged care webpage on the department’s website.

Extending the Serious Incident Response Scheme to home care and flexible care providers

According to the Department of Health and Aged Care, from 1 December 2022, the Serious Incident Response Scheme (SIRS) will extend beyond residential aged care to include providers of home and flexible aged care provided in home or community settings. Providers must have an Incident Management System in place and inform the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission if a reportable incident occurs.

An exposure draft of the legislation and explanatory statement are now available on the Department of Health and Aged Care website.

Comments on the draft instrument can be sent to sirs@health.gov.au by 5pm AEDT Sunday 13 November.

Aged care reform consultations now open

According to the Department of Health and Aged Care, the Department continues to consult widely on the aged care reforms. Some current and upcoming surveys and discussion papers include:

• Survey: Restorative care (STRC) for in-home aged care – survey closes 14 November
• Discussion paper: A new program for in-home aged care – submissions due 25 November
• Survey and consultation papers: revised Aged Care Quality Standards – survey closes 25 November.

Find out more about these and other opportunities to get involved in the reforms, or read about what the Department has heard in recent consultation activities.

Find out more and get involved at the Aged Care Engagement Hub.

Reminder: Publish your General Purpose Financial Statement by 30 November

According to the Department of Health and Aged Care, to improve transparency in the aged care sector, approved residential care providers who are already required to prepare a General Purpose Financial Statement (GPFS), excluding state and territory government providers, must now publish their GPFS:

• on their website, or
• if the provider does not have a website, elsewhere online in a manner that is publicly accessible.

Providers have 5 months after the end of the financial year, or one month after the Aged Care Financial Report (ACFR) is due, to publish their GPFS. For the 2021-22 financial year, providers are reminded to publish their GPFS by Wednesday 30 November 2022.

For further information on GPFS publication, see the department’s website or Forms Administration’s webpage.

Registered Nurses' Payment grant round opens soon

According to the Department of Health and Aged Care, aged care providers can apply for the Aged Care Registered Nurses’ Payment on behalf of eligible staff. The payment rewards clinical skills and leadership for Registered Nurses working for the same provider over an eligibility period.

The first non-competitive grant round is open for the eligibility periods of either:

• 1 November 2021 to 31 October 2022
• 1 May 2022 to 31 October 2022.

The grant round closes on Wednesday 14 December 2022. Find out more on the GrantConnect website.

Initial findings on ACAR reform released

According to Australian Ageing Agenda, the findings of a new Federal government report entitled Places to people – embedding choice in residential aged care will guide the eventual design and implementation of a new residential aged care system, one that removes bed licences and improves choice and control for older Australians to make informed decisions on their aged care services.

Further consultation will be sought with sector stakeholders and older Australians throughout the rest of the year. The second round of consultation will focus specifically on the issues and concerns detailed in the first report.

‘There are a lot of eyes on us’: New ACCPA chief shares unity plans

According to Aged Care Insite, the new head of Australia's aged care provider peak has revealed the organisation's top priorities for the sector. Tom Symondson, who was elected as chief of the Aged and Community Care Providers Association (ACCPA) last month, said he'll strive to create an internally unified organisation and to become the voice of providers during upcoming reform.

Aged Care Insite spoke with Symondson about the sector's upcoming reforms, Labor's recent budget and the announcement of the industrial relations bill to facilitate wage growth.

ARIIA Grants: Round 3 is now open

According to Inside Ageing, the Aged Care Research & Industry Innovation Australia (ARIIA) has announced its latest funding round, with up to $160,000 (ex GST) for projects completed within 12 months. Priority areas for Round 3 include dementia care; rehabilitation, reablement & restorative care; mental health & wellbeing; social isolation; and urgent & critical need.

The grants are designed to recognise evidence-based initiatives that are scalable, with eligibility consisting of one aged care service provider in partnership with a consumer representative; and one research organisation (either a university, a publicly funded research organisation, or an organisation that has a research focus).

Additional information can be found on the ARIIA website.

Resource sets to improve advance care planning

According to Australian Ageing Agenda, a new toolkit for aged care providers aims to strengthen the knowledge and uptake of advance care planning. Developed by Advance Care Planning Australia – a national program funded by the Department of Health and Aged Care – the Advance Care Planning Improvement Toolkit provides aged care services with resources to support organisational advance care planning, performance monitoring, and quality improvement. A customised version of the toolkit has been developed for each state and territory in Australia.

You can sign up for a copy of the toolkit here.

App supports early dementia diagnosis

According to Australian Ageing Agenda, a new app launched by Dementia Australia called BrainTrack helps individuals monitor and understand changes in cognition in an effort to facilitate early diagnosis. Funded by the federal government and developed by Deakin University’s Applied Artificial Intelligence Institute, BrainTrack was officially launched by Minister for Health and Aged Care Mark Butler during a webinar hosted by Dementia Australia in October.

The BrainTrack app is available for download for free through the Apple App Store or Google Play.

Legislation

No significant developments this week.