- Aged Care Reform
- Pricing & Funding
- Compliance & Quality
Estimates reveal $1.4B unspent in Support at Home and residential care
Key points5 points
- The Department confirmed $727 million in Support at Home funding went unspent between 1 November 2025 and 30 June 2026.
- Residential aged care funding of $570 million went unspent in 2025-26, with officials attributing this to occupancy below Budget forecasts.
- 24% of aged care assessments between July and September 2026 were conducted by telehealth, prompting questions about suitability criteria for complex-need older people.
- IHACPA set the AN-ACC base price at $303.19 using 2023-24 cost data indexed forward, and engaged an independent agency to verify the calculations.
- IHACPA has said it will continue examining the findings in the coming weeks.
Summary
Senate Estimates hearings on 28 October 2026 examined the first year of the new Aged Care Act.
The Department confirmed $727 million in Support at Home funding went unspent between November 2025 and June 2026, and a further $570 million in residential aged care funding was also unused in 2025-26. Officials linked the residential underspend to occupancy falling below Budget forecasts, though national occupancy reached 91.7%. Nearly a quarter of assessments from July to September 2026 were conducted by telehealth, raising questions about how assessors judge suitability for people with cognitive impairment or complex needs. IHACPA also confirmed its $303.19 base AN-ACC price was independently verified after repeated internal checks.