My Aged Care review submissions open

A review of My Aged Care has been launched, with submissions open to the public.

The Office of the Inspector-General of Aged Care (the Office) has commenced a public submissions process to seek input from people who have used My Aged Care in the past five years to seek an assessment for care, are currently using it, or who are planning to use My Aged Care in the future.

Input is sought from people who have had a positive experience of My Aged Care and people who have experienced a barrier to using My Aged Care, whether through access difficulties, personal circumstances, technological barriers, language barriers or any other issue impacting their access.

This review is an important milestone for the Office, as it marks the first time the Inspector-General will use his powers to investigate, make recommendations, and report to parliament on the performance of a Commonwealth entity with responsibility for part of the aged care system.

The Inspector-General has asked the Office to examine whether My Aged Care enables older people in Australia to initiate the assessment process required for entry to the aged care system in a timely manner, regardless of their location, health requirements, cultural background, identity or prior knowledge of the system.

The Inspector-General consulted widely to explore the areas of possible significant and systemic weakness in the aged care system, which helped to determine this review topic as a priority. A consistent theme emerged as people shared their experiences of using My Aged Care and the complexities around navigating and accessing the aged care system.

The Office will also collect and consider evidence from government entities and their My Aged Care partners in undertaking this review.

Progress reports and interim reports will not be published. The Inspector-General will provide a final review report and any recommendations to the Minister responsible for Aged Care to table in both houses of Parliament. It will also be published on the Inspector-General of Aged Care’s website. The Office expects the outcomes of this review to be made public by the end of 2024, subject to findings.

Public submissions are open until 14 June 2024.

Image credit: iStock.com/Kenstocker