Home care packages

To be eligible for a home care package, you must be an older person who needs coordinated services to live independently at home, or a younger person with care needs that are not met through other specialist services.

You will need to apply for a face-to-face aged care assessment using an online application form which you can do yourself, or get a loved one to complete for you.Our aged care experts are more than happy to help you through this process. Please get in touch for a FREE consultation.

Depending on the level you are eligible for, home care package funds can be spent on things that relate to your care and wellbeing. Common services and items people use their funding on are:personal care (e.g. showering, dressing, continence management), domestic chores, shopping assistance, therapies (e.g. physiotherapy, occupational therapy), meal preparation, transportation to appointments, respite care, garden maintenance, medication management, social activities, nursing (e.g. wound management), podiatry, home modifications, assistive technology (e.g. walking frames) and exercise programs.

If you are eligible for a Home Care Package, the government will cover most of the cost of your care. Depending on your income, you will be expected to contribute a certain amount to your provider for your services. This consists of three types of fees: a basic daily fee, an income-tested care fee (full pensioners do not have to pay this), and any additional fees for services that aren’t covered by your package.Each service provider charges a different amount for their services and care.

The CHSP (Commonwealth Home Support Program) is an entry-level program for seniors who are mostly able to live on their own. It provides government-subsidised, low-intensity help to those who only need a small amount of assistance.

On the other hand, a Home Care Package is a coordinated and tailored service that helps older people with complex care needs continue living at home. You can decide how to spend your funds rather than choosing from a menu of services (as is the case with the CHSP).

In general, government subsidised CHSP services should not be provided to people who are receiving a Home Care Package. When you are assigned a package and choose a provider, your CHSP services will cease and services will be paid from your Home Care Package funding instead.

A Home Care Package does not fund the following services: food, payment for permanent accommodation (e.g. rent or mortgage repayments), discretionary spending, day-to-day bills, holidays, entertainment activities and items already covered by Medicare or Pharmaceutical Benefits.

Only government-approved Home Care Package providers can host Home Care Packages for clients. This means they have satisfied the government’s legal and social requirements to administer packages to Australian consumers.

HomeCaring is a Home Care Package and NDIS provider. We can help you get the most out of your funds – get in touch to find out more.

Each level of Home Care Packages provides different funding amounts, depending on the amount of care you need.

• Level 1 provides for basic care needs at approximately $10,000 a year
• Level 2 providers for low care needs at approximately $18,000 a year
• Level 3 provides for Intermediate care needs at approximately $39,000 a year
• Level 4 provides for high care needs at approximately $59,000 a year