Aged Care Costs
In order for an Aged Care Residence to operate, there are fees and charges which are applicable for a resident to pay upon entry. This may include a refundable deposit which will be agreed between the provider and the resident or their representative. Majority of the fees which are charged by the Aged Care residence are advised by the Department of Health. The resident’s representative will receive a copy of the same letter from the Department of Health, for their records.
What are the costs involved?
This fee is charged to cover the standard living costs of a resident in an aged care residence. The daily care fees is calculated as 85% of the single person rate of the basic Aged Pension. A resident is charged a daily care fee, which is reviewed by the Department of Health twice a year. This amount also applies to all respite residents. The Director of Nursing will explain these charges to you or your family at the time of accepting a place at a Samkay Health residence.
The means tested care fee is charged by the Department of Health as an additional contribution towards the care of the resident. This fee is charged based on the submission of a completed income and assets assessment to Centrelink.
Refundable Accommodation Deposits (RADs) is an amount agreed to enter permanent care.This will be discussed with you prior to admission. Further information in regards to this can be obtained from management.
If you are not eligible to pay RAD or DAP, you may be asked to pay a Refundable Accommodation Contribution. This is calculated by Centrelink based on the value of your assets. The brochure from Centrelink explains this in greater detail. These figures and fees are set and occasionally altered as required by Centrelink. You will be informed of any fee changes through advice from the Department of Health as well as on your invoices.
Samkay Health strives to provide the best services and features at our residences while ensuring that these costs are absorbed by us and not passed on to our residents. However, certain costs not covered as stated in Annexure A of your resident agreement (Care and Services) will be charged to the resident’s account (if applicable). As an example, residents are expected to cover costs in relation to labels for their clothes. Electrical tagging, which is conducted annually, is also charged for all the residents’ electric devices in order to ensure they are operating optimally and safely.
For the current schedule of the aged care fees and charges, please refer to the Department of Health webpage
