More funding is set to pay for more aged care workers in regional areas but data analysis reveals it won't be enough to ease Home Care Package wait times.
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Government data analysed by The Senior shows shortfalls in the ratio of service providers to people needing Home Care (soon to become Support at Home), in different regions of Australia.
The most recent government dada shows more than 87,000 people waiting for a home care package, or for an existing one to be upgraded, as of March 31, while HelloCare has reported waitlists will surge to 100,000 by November 2025.
On August 7, Minister for Aged Care and Seniors Sam Rae announced $30.8 million to help attract and support more than 6000 aged care workers in rural and regional Australia.
"This announcement is all about giving workers and providers opportunities to attract, train, upskill and retain the passionate people who care for our loved ones," he said.
Read more in The Senior
Government data published in July showed wait times to be assigned a home care package should be between 6 to 9 months for Level 1 and 2, 9 to 12 months for Level 3, and 12 to 15 months for Level 4 - but The Senior believes this is not the case for many people waiting.
Across the country, there were 922 approved service providers as of March 31, many servicing more than one region.
The Senior compared the number of service providers (2303) in different regions with the number of people who were already on a package (289,481), those waiting for an upgraded package (17,374) plus those yet to commence a Home Care Package (70,223).
That's a ratio of 1 service provider to 163.7 people (if those waiting were to be given a package today) though not all regions are equal.
See how your region fares in our table below.
South Australia's Riverland region has three providers servicing the area, with 824 people already on an HCP, 30 people waiting for an upgrade and another 146 waiting to commence an HCP - that's a ratio of 333.3 people to 1 provider.
ADA Australia chief executive officer Geoff Rowe said wait times for packages to be approved between regional and metropolitan people was the same, while he believed blowouts was because of a lack of locally available services, particularly in regional areas.
"People living in regional areas are more limited in terms of choice, and have shortages in particular services such as allied health, and trying to get assessments for package items," he said.
"If you're not happy with a provider, often there is no alternative in remote locations."
Mr Rowe said a long travel time for services would "eat into" package budgets, and while subsidies may be available, some money might be used to cover administration.
OPAN chief executive Craig Gear echoed Mr Rowe's comments about limited choices for regional Australians.
He said it was pleasing to see extra funding in regional areas, and wanted to see more options in regional areas and flexible models of service to help local communities and build local workforces.
"We also want to see recognition of the higher cost of service delivery in regional areas, which may be achieved through higher subsidies or package levels that reflect the increased costs," he said.
A new rights-based Aged Care Act, and Support at Home, are due to start on November 1, 2025.
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