Over-55s on Newstart: Career Transition Assistance
Published 23 April 2019
THE April Budget ignored them and the Response to the Budget ignored them. During the election campaign neither the Opposition nor the Government will want to talk about them.
The painful consequences of no universal dental care
Published 23 April 2019
EXISTING Australian public dental schemes are inadequate, uncoordinated, and inequitable. Unlike what happens when you visit your GP, Medicare does not pick up any of the bill for a trip to the dentist, leaving Australians largely out of pocket. [more]
My Health Record and Advance Care Directives
Published 23 April 2019
THE decision to sign up for My Health Record is a personal one, but if you have decided to sign up, you should make sure that your Advance Care Directive is included in your My Health Record.
NSW State Election 2019: now for keeping those promises
Published 23 April 2019
The NSW Liberal/National Coalition Government was returned on 29 March 2019 for a third four-year term. During the election campaign, the NSW Government made a number of promises directly affecting the lives of older people in NSW. [more]
Federal election 2019: affordable housing
Published 23 April 2019
THE federal election is coming up, so what are the major federal political parties promising to make housing affordable?
Abuse of older people: a national plan
Published 23 April 2019
ON 19 March 2019, the Federal Government announced the National Plan to Respond to the Abuse of Older Australians. The plan aims to combat abuse and assist older people who experience emotional, physical, or financial vulnerabilities. [more]
Cuts to NDIS and calls for Royal Commissioners to step down
Published 23 April 2019
THE Federal Budget announcement on 2 April 2019, presented a $7.1 billion surplus to be delivered by the next financial year. This projected surplus is possible in part due to a $3 billion cut to the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). [more]
ACCC shows Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission the way on BUPA
Published 16 April 2019
“The spanking new Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission has been shown up for what it is: an already tired re-iteration of its predecessor the Aged Care Quality Accreditation Agency and a watchdog lacking teeth and growl”, said Paul Versteege, Policy Manager for the Combined Pensioners and Superannuants Association (CPSA). [more]
Budget reply fails 185,000 Clayton’s Age Pensioners
Published 5 April 2019
“While there were many good things in the Opposition’s Budget reply speech, it failed to say anything meaningful about Newstart, the Clayton’s Age Pension, which is the 60% pension you get when you don’t get a pension”, said Paul Versteege, Policy Manager for the Combined Pensioners and Superannuants Association. [more]
Budget right of reply must address: Newstart, Aged Care, Public Dental, Affordable Housing
Published 4 April 2019
“There are encouraging reports about the federal opposition committing to increased health funding, but simply increasing funding for Medicare is not enough”, said Paul Versteege, Policy Manager for the Combined Pensioners and Superannuants Association. [more]
Budget 2019: When a tax cut is the unkindest cut of all
Published 2 April 2019
“A one-off Energy Assistance Payment is about the only thing that pensioners and carers take away from a Budget that ignores the aged care, the inadequacy of Newstart, the lack of a decent national public dental scheme and the urgent need for affordable housing to be addressed at a national level”, said Paul Versteege, Policy Manager for the Combined Pensioners and Superannuants Association. [more]
Bathurst: a tale of two bullets
Published 19 March 2019
BATHURST CPSA and the Bathurst community scored a big win on 21 October 2012 when the first Bathurst Bullet left Bathurst Station for Sydney Central Railway, but the story does not end there. Bathurst has continued to lobby and now a second Bathurst Bullet has been announced. [more]
Pension news: older Aussies on Newstart once again the losers
Published 19 March 2019
AS a result of indexation, pension payments including the Age Pension, the Disability Support Pension and the Carer Payment have increased by $9.90 a fortnight to $926.20 for singles, and by $14.80 a fortnight to $1,396.20 for couples. [more]
Ring, ring, why don’t you give me a call?
Published 19 March 2019
EVERYBODY remembers the old ABBA song asking that question and THE VOICE can finally reveal why that call is not being made now that your home phone is going through the NBN.
Generic medications shortage
Published 19 March 2019
HAVE you been to the chemist lately and been told that your usual generic, cheaper prescriptions are not available and that you will need to shell out for brand prescriptions?
Palliative care boost for NSW
Published 19 March 2019
THE National Palliative Care Strategy 2018 has been launched for implementation over a five-year period. All Australian Health Ministers have signed the Strategy, but how worthwhile is it.
Hospital waiting lists not getting better
Published 19 March 2019
ACCORDING to an annual report by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, in 2017–18 about 874,000 patients joined the public hospital elective surgery waiting lists. This was just under one per cent higher than the previous year, which doesn't sound like much but which masks some pretty horrible facts. [more]
Aged care planning gone mad
Published 19 March 2019
There are just over 207,000 nursing home places in Australia, but only 187,000 of those places are filled, 20,000 are vacant. The nursing home occupancy rate is in free-fall. It’s just over 90 per cent when it used to be 98 per cent. [more]
Quality indicators: the future of aged care if done well
Published 19 March 2019
FROM 1 July 2019 reporting of clinical quality indicators for all Australian Government subsidised residential aged care providers will be mandatory. Mandatory is the important word, because generally speaking aged care providers do nothing on a voluntary basis. [more]
Older people living well with in-home support, or not so well?
Published 19 March 2019
A REPORT called Older people living well with in-home support tells the stories of forty people who receive aged care at home. The Report was prepared by consultancy Research Matters through an Australian Government grant. While most of the people taking part in the study acknowledged that without in-home support they would not be able to continue living at home, or only with the greatest difficulty, their comments demonstrated that in-home support as a care system needs a lot of work. [more]
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