The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has just released a guide which is designed to help consumers understand their rights after they are approved for a home care package.
Since February 2017, home care is now allocated to consumers instead of providers. This means you have a lot more choice on who provides your services and which ones you receive, but it also means the onus is on the consumer to do their research and know what they are signing up for.
Just this week, we received a call from a village manager whose mother has Motor Neurone Disease. She receives a Level 4 home care package plus a supplement to pay for her feeding tube. Recently her father discovered that the 40 per cent charged in administration fees was also being paid from the supplement.
Her provider is entitled to charge the fee on the supplement – but as she points out, many people would be unaware of this.
Educate yourself on what you’re entitled to
The guide has some good advice including:
- Look for an agreement that lists who will provide your service; how much the service will cost including exit fees; and the process to transfer to a new provider.
- Make sure your agreement includes a term that exit fees will not be payable if your provider makes changes to your agreement that you don’t consent to.
- If your provider needs to change your agreement, make sure you understand what the changes mean for you and only sign if you are happy with the changes.
- If the services supplied are not provided with care and skill or within a reasonable time, you can ask your provider to fix the problem including asking for a refund or cancellation or for services to be done again.
- Check your monthly statements from your provider are correct and match what you agreed to pay. If not, ask your provider.
- If you choose to change providers, consider if you will need to pay an exit fee. If so, it can only come out of your unspent funds.
Whatever level of package that you receive, you are obligated to contribute to your care – so it’s worth making sure you are getting value for money.
You can download a copy of the guide here.
You can find providers and more information about home care on agedcare101 here.
If you have issues with your service provider, you can also contact the Older Persons Advocacy Network (OPAN) at www.opan.com.au or on 1800 700 600.
