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Home Care Packages provide assistance for senior Brisbane residents to stay at home and stay independent.
The types of senior home care services provided with our Brisbane Home Care Packages will depend on your needs. A package gives you the choice and flexibility in the way that care and support is provided to you. Types of services can include transport, social support, domestic assistance, personal care, home maintenance, nursing care, assistive technologies, therapy and exercise, medication assistance and food services.
The goal of our Brisbane Home Care Package program is to provide older people with the assistance needed to remain living independently at home, giving both the choice and flexibility on how your care and support is provided.
There are four levels of Home Care Packages which are designed to give you the care you need. Jubilee Community Care will help you determine which package will meet your needs.
The types of service provided under a Home Care Package will depend on your needs. A package gives you the choice and flexibility in the way that care and support is provided to you. The government also provides two additional financial supports (called Package supplements):
These supplements are available with any of the four levels of Home Care Packages. Jubilee Community Care will apply for these additional support supplements if you meet the eligibility criteria.
Our model of care and support is based on the concept of Consumer Directed Care. This provides you with choices about the types of care and services that you wish to access. We encourage you and will work with you to identify your goals in relation to your preferred lifestyle, health and independence.
From July 2015 Senior Home Care Packages have been provided under the Consumer Directed Care approach that will put you, the consumer, in the driver’s seat if you wish. Consumers will have a lot more opportunity to say how the funds allocated to you in your package are used, so that you can get the things you think will make your life easier.
With Consumer Directed Care the funds the Government has allocated for your Home Care Package, together with your co-contribution, are set aside in a budget for you. Its purpose is to help you stay at home for as long as possible, and provided that it meets legal and safety requirements, you will get to make the decisions about how the funds are spent. We will hold these funds on your behalf and work with you to coordinate the services you want.
You will receive a statement of account that lets you see exactly the funds you have, how much you can spend and how much goes on what. You can decide on the arrangements that will work best for you. Of course there might be some things that aren’t possible, or may not be within your budget, and you might need to come up with an alternate plan.
An important part of Consumer Directed Care is about what you CAN do rather than focusing on what you CAN’T do. It’s about helping you to continue to live a good life at home. Even if you have had some health issues, the right sort of assistance can help you feel healthier and back doing more things for yourself. You can also buy extra services with your own funds if you want to have more assistance than is covered by your Home Care Package.
Some options that your Home Care Package may include are:
Ask yourself these questions:
If you answer ‘yes’ to any of these questions, then you may be eligible for a Home Care Package and the next step is to be assessed by an Aged Care Assessment Team (ACAT).
Call our office for home assistance on 07 3871 3220 and we will guide and assist you through the process to access Brisbane senior home care services.
Click here for more information on the role of ACATs and to find your local ACAT team or contact the Government’s My Aged Care service on 1800 200 422 www.myagedcare.gov.au/eligibility-and-assessment/acat-assessments
You may be asked to pay one or both of the following:
You can call My Aged Care on 1800 200 422 to help you estimate the fees and charges you may have to pay towards your Home Care Package. Before you call you should have your financial information ready, especially details of your various forms of income.
The maximum basic daily fee is 17.5% of the single person rate of the basic Age Pension.
Depending on your income, service providers will be contacted by the Government to collect an income tested fee as a contribution towards the cost of your care. This extra amount is known as an ‘income-tested care fee’.
You cannot be asked to pay an income-tested care fee if you have a yearly income below a certain amount. To find the latest schedule of fees and charges, including the income-free amounts, visit the Australian Government’s Department of Health website or click here.
The Department of Human Services calculates the income-tested care fee based on an assessment of your financial information. The assessment does not include the value of your family home or any other assets.
There are annual and lifetime caps that apply to the income-tested care fee. Once these caps are reached, you cannot be asked to pay any more income-tested care fees. Allowances and subsidies are available for those families who are financially or socially disadvantaged.
