New Aged Care Act delayed until November 2025

On 4 June 2025, the Australian Government announced a delay in the commencement of the new Aged Care Act, pushing the start date from 1 July to 1 November 2025.

This decision has sparked mixed reactions within the aged care sector, particularly given how close we were to the original start date. For several months, the home care sector has raised concerns to the Department that

providers were not adequately prepared to begin on 1 July as many necessary government & legal systems, information, education and training related to the changes were still incomplete or unavailable.

The Aged Care Act serves as a foundation for several other key reforms, so any delay to the Act will also delay the rollout of these related programs and reforms.

All of the following initiatives that will impact home care packages consumers will now be delayed until 1 November 2025:

• The new Support at Home program (which will replace the Home Care Packages program)
• Strengthened Aged Care Quality Standards A new Statement of Rights for Older People
• New Registered Supporter legislation & supported decision-making framework
• New all-inclusive pricing for hourly rates for services
• Current fees & contributions (will remain the same as they are now)

This extension provides us with additional time to communicate these changes with consumers and will allow you time to consider any questions you may have regarding how these changes will affect you and the services you receive.

Please get in touch if you would like further details about the implications of the delay on the care and services you receive.