As the Australian government notices a shift in the desire for older Australians to continue living at home, it has repeatedly allocated more funds to increase the quota of Home Care Packages.
This means that more and more older Australians are being approved for this subsidy, which can exceed $50,000 per year at most.
However, before the official initiative of the allowance, older people may encounter various unexpected problems during the application process such as evaluating, queuing, and selecting institutions due to language barriers.
The following are examples of clients who had difficulty getting started with their Home Care Package and how we helped them.
High-level allowance approved but not issued:
Uncle Ding has been approved for a Level 3 Home Care Package, but after a long wait of over a year, he had still received no news.
This led him to seek advice from us in one of our webinars that we had hosted. After explaining his current situation to us one of our consultants contacted him.
After getting a better understanding of the situation, the intake consultant made a three-way call with Uncle Ding to My Aged Care.
The consultant began explaining Uncle Ding’s current situation and how it was difficult for him to maintain an independent home-based life, and that he wished to receive some subsidies in advance.
Since Uncle Ding had been waiting for over a year, and the situation was urgent, My Aged Care quickly issued a Level 2 Home Care Package allowance in advance so that he could start using part of the care services before his Level 3 package was granted, which will not affect the subsequent distribution of Level 3 allowances.
This enabled Uncle Ding to see a genuine improvement in his living condition and quality of life.
If you are approved for a Home Care Package allowance and are still waiting to receive your Package, you can contact My Aged Care to explain your current status and needs, particularly if the waiting time is very long, and request to speed up the process.
Having a lower level of package to use, prior to your designated package being issued, can be beneficial in the interim.
Another good idea would be to keep the contact information of your assessor during the assessment to facilitate direct contact in the future.
If you are unable to communicate independently, you can also request assistance from our expert team at Happy Living who are more than happy to help you.
What if you failed to join a Home Care Package Provider when you received your package？
In May of this year, Mr Liu received a notification letter from My Aged Care stating that he had been assigned his Home Care Package. However, due to the pandemic, his children had stayed in their home country and Mr. Liu was unable to independently process the letters in English.
Earlier this month, his children asked him to pass the letter to Happy Living to see if we could handle it on Mr Liu’s behalf.
Unfortunately, by then, the Providers selection period of 56 days was overdue, and Mr Liu’s Level 4 home care allowance had been withdrawn by the My Aged Care.
Authorized by Mr Liu, the Care Coordinator at Happy Living took immediate action, contacted the relevant department, and submitted a written explanation of the cause of Mr Liu’s delay in action as well as an application for receiving the allowance.
My Aged Care reviewed his case and Mr. Liu’s application has since been accepted and the allowance will be issued again within a one month period.
Because Happy Living handled this issue properly and submitted materials that were detailed and complete, Mr Liu then received the letter in just a week and joined Happy Living.
We recommend that you start the process as soon as possible after receiving your letter of approval for your Home Care Package.
On one hand, it avoids unnecessary troubles caused by overdue decisions and on the other hand, this can also help to receive allowances as soon as possible and start using care services immediately.
We also suggest however that you carefully consider and compare Providers before choosing one that truly suits you.
This will enable you to get the most from your Home Care Package funding and be with a Provider who understands your unique needs which will enable you to live happily and safely at home.
If you would like to learn more about a Home Care Package and the services Happy Living provide, don’t hesitate to reach out to our friendly Care Expert team on 1300 911 728.
