Thread by @agedcarecrisis

Concerns regarding exploitation of the #agedcare funding system & repeated calls for accountability & transparency R well founded. A brief (by all means not comprehensive) history on #rorting or 'maximising' in aged & home care @JasonWardCICTAR @anmf_federal

(2012) Nursing homes: The manner in which govt was prepared to turn a blind eye to #rorting in #agedcare was revealed when employees in the Health dept blew the whistle on ABC @4corners in 2012 web.archive.org/web/2019070807…

Nurses working for the dept to oversee payments claimed that #agedcare homes were "treating residents like a cash cow". The dept was not acting on info they supplied. They were told to "look the other way, tick it all, let it go through" #rorting

Consultants employed by providers to do the billing, spoke of finding "hidden goldmines". One nurse indicated "As a nurse, you normally work with integrity, but, with the dept, you have to lower your standards right down" web.archive.org/web/2019070807…

6mths later, dept told parliament that rate of "incorrect claiming" had increased. The response of the health department was to “educate” providers by running workshops. Not much rigour here #rorting #agedcare parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/downl…

(2013) Home Care: ERA's then CEO told parliament of the situation in home care where “40+% cent or more of the (funding) pkg is taken with admin & case mgmt”. There were examples of 51% & “closer to 60% of the package”. bit.ly/327dK18

(2014) Govt provided a per day supplement to provide for the difficult to manage #Dementia patients. FOI documents revealed a bonanza on "over claiming" & claims were "most common in the private sector": web.archive.org/web/2019070807…

(2015-16) Nursing Homes: It was revealed that funding for very frail residents (Complex Health Index) was being rorted. By May 2016, the Turnbull govt realised how bad it was & reigned in the bonanza: bit.ly/2YF6B63

The #agedcare industry simply responded by denying rorting & blaming govt for cutting funding. It claimed that reduced funding was responsible for poor care & mounted a campaign to get community support for more funding bit.ly/2YFoeCX

(2016) Omnibus Bill: introduced civil penalties for false claims in connection w/ appraisals or reappraisals. Provisions also allowed regulators to reclaim all the excess money obtained. We are unaware of any penalties being applied legislation.gov.au/Series/C2016A0…