3. What can a Government Subsidised Home Care Package pay for?

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There are Government Guidelines as to what in home aged care support, services and care your Government Subsidised Home Care Package can and cannot pay for.

This list applies to all 4 levels of Home Care Packages.

A. Care services Care can include:
Personal care services Personal care assistance, including individual attention, individual supervision, and physical assistance with:

  • bathing, showering including providing shower chairs if necessary, personal hygiene and grooming, dressing and undressing, and using dressing aids
  • toileting
  • dressing and undressing
  • mobility
  • transfer (including in and out of bed)
Activities of daily living Personal assistance, including individual attention, individual supervision and physical assistance with:

  • communication including assistance to address difficulties arising from impaired hearing, sight or speech, or lack of common language, assistance with the fitting of sensory communication aids, checking hearing aid batteries, cleaning spectacles and assistance in using the telephone
Nutrition, hydration, meal preparation and diet Includes:

  • assistance with preparing meals
  • assistance with special diet for health, religious, cultural or other reasons
  • assistance with using eating utensils and eating aids and assistance with actual feeding as necessary
  • providing enteral feeding formula and equipment
Management of skin integrity Includes:

  • providing bandages, dressings and skin emollients
Continence management Includes:

  • assessment for and, if required, providing disposable pads and absorbent aids, commode chairs, bedpans and urinals, catheter and urinary drainage appliances and enemas
  • assistance in using continence aids and appliances and managing continence
Mobility and dexterity Includes:

  • providing crutches, quadruped walkers, walking frames, walking sticks and wheelchairs
  • providing mechanical devices for lifting, bed rails, slide sheets, sheetskins, tri-pillows, and pressure relieving mattresses
  • assistance in using the above aids
B. Support services Support services can include:
Support services Includes:

  • medication management
  • support for consumers with cognitive impairment, including individual therapy, activities and access to specific programmes designed to prevent or manage a particular condition or behaviour, enhance quality of life and provide ongoing support
  • transport and personal assistance to help the consumer shop, visit health practitioners or attend social activities
  • advising the consumer on areas of concern in their home that pose safety risks and ways to mitigate the risks
  • arranging social activities and providing or coordinating transport to social functions, entertainment activities and other out-of-home services.
  • cleaning
  • personal laundry services, including laundering of the consumer’s clothing and bedding that can be machine-washed and ironing
  • arranging for dry-cleaning of the consumer’s clothing and bedding that cannot be machine washed
  • gardening to keep access to your home safe
  • rehabilitative support, or helping to access rehabilitative support, to meet professionally determined therapeutic need
  • emotional support including ongoing support in adjusting to a lifestyle involving increased dependency and assistance for the consumer and carer if appropriate
  • providing 24-hour on-call access to emergency assistance including access to an emergency call system if the consumer is assessed as requiring it
  • home maintenance, reasonably required to maintain the home and garden in a condition of functional safety and provide an adequate level of security
  • modifications to the home, such as easy access taps, shower hose or bath rails
  • assisting the consumer, and the homeowner if the home owner is not the consumer, to access technical advice on major home modifications
  • assistance to access support services to maintain personal affairs
Leisure, interests and activities Includes:

  • encouragement to take part in social and community activities that promote and protect the consumer’s lifestyle, interest and well-being
C. Clinical services Can include:
Clinical care Includes:

  • nursing, allied health and therapy services such as speech therapy, podiatry, occupational or physiotherapy services
  • other clinical services such as hearing and vision services
Access to other health and related services Includes:

  • referral to health practitioners or other service providers

Excluded items that your Government Subsidised Home Care Package cannot pay for

The following services or items are outside the scope of the Home Care Packages Programme and must not be paid for by a Government Subsidised Home Care Package (by any of the four levels of the home care).

Excluded items Items:
Excluded Items
  • use of the package funds as a source of general income for the consumer
  • purchase of food, except as part of enteral feeding requirements*
  • payment for permanent accommodation, including assistance with home purchase, mortgage payments or rent
  • payment of home care fees (Basic Daily Fee or Income Tested Care Fee)
  • payment of fees or charges for other types of care funded or jointly funded by the Australian Government (in other words, no double dipping)
  • home modifications or capital items that are not related to the consumer’s care needs
  • travel and accommodation for holidays
  • cost of entertainment activities, such as club memberships and tickets to sporting events
  • payment for services and items covered by the Medicare Benefits Schedule or the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme
  • gambling activities
  • illegal activities
  • Please note your In Home Care Package cannot pay for any services, care or equipment when the senior is in hospital or respite in a Nursing Home, the reason being the government is already paying for those services, i.e. no double dipping.

Clarification About Meals

*Meals – The government subsidy for a Home Care Package can be used to pay for the preparation and delivery of meals. This could be through the consumer’s home care provider, a HACC service provider (for example, under a sub-contracting arrangement with the home care provider) or by a private service provider. However, the consumer is expected to cover, or to make a contribution towards, the cost of the food. The amount of the contribution or fee may be negotiated between the home care provider, the meals service provider and the consumer.

Your Home Care Package can pay for a caregiver to shop for ingredients and to prepare your meals, however the consumer must pay for the food from their own money.

Important Note About Clinical Care

If you need clinical care such as services provided by Registered Nurses or Allied Health staff the Government Guidelines are very clear that clinical care must be prioritised over less essential services such as gardening.

The Definitive Guide to Government Funded Consumer Directed In Home Aged Care Packages

1. What is a Consumer Directed Care (CDC) in Home Care Package?

2. How many hours of support or care can I receive for my Home Care Package?

3. What can a Government Subsidised Home Care Package pay for? Current Page

4. What are the costs of a Consumer Directed Care (CDC) Home Care Package?

5. What does Consumer Directed Care (CDC) Home Care Package mean?

6. Consumers’ 9 New Rights under Consumer Directed Care (CDC)

7. How do you apply for a Government Subsidised Home Care Package?

8. Are you approved or assigned a Government Funded Home Care Package?

9. Should Self-Funded Seniors accept a Level 2 Home Care Package?

10. Should a Pensioner accept a Level 1 or 2 Home Care Package?

11. How do I start my Home Care Package?

12. How do I transfer my Home Care Package to Daughterly Care Community Services?

13. How do I know if the Home Care Package fees I’m being charged are fair?

14. How will Consumer Directed Care (CDC) benefit my loved one?

15. Is Consumer Directed Care (CDC) working?

16. Will Consumer Directed Care (CDC) make it easier for my loved one to stay at home?

17. Frequently asked questions about Consumer Directed Care (CDC) Home Care Packages

Discover the secret to getting more out of your Consumer Directed Care (CDC) Home Care Package!

Do you have a question that isn’t answered here or just looking for more information? Browse our FAQs.

4. What are the costs of a Consumer Directed Care (CDC) Home Care Package?

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Contact us for a confidential chat about your in-home care needs or to organise your free no obligation consultation by emailing: claireg@daughterlycare.com.au or ring us on (02) 9970 7333.