Support at Home: Changes to in-home aged care explained

In response to the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety, the Australian Government is making some changes to the way in-home aged care programs are provided.

Supporting people to age well and enjoy life from the comfort of their home and community is at the heart of what we do. Whether or not you currently receive in-home aged care from Centacare, we are committed to ensuring you feel fully informed and confident about accessing high quality and safe care.

Rest assured, we’ll walk alongside you on this journey and, as the government releases more information over the coming months, we’ll publish a series of articles to help you understand and navigate the new system. Never miss an article – sign up for Centacare updates here.

Moving to Support at Home

Support at Home will bring together current in-home aged care programs, including:

• From 1 July 2005, the existing Home Care Packages (HCP) program and the Short-Term Restorative Care (STRC) will be replaced by the Support at Home program
• The Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP) will transition to the new program no earlier than 1 July 2027.

Current in-home aged care programs will continue to operate as normal until they transition into the new program.

If you currently receive a Centacare Home Care Package

All Home Care Package recipients (including those on the National Priority System awaiting an HCP at their assessed level) will be automatically transitioned to this new system.

A couple of things that are important to know:

• If you already access the HCP Program, you will move to Support at Home and keep the same level of funding to access services from the service list.
• If you have Commonwealth unspent funds today, you will keep these funds for use under the Support at Home program.
• If your current HCP is meeting your care needs, you do not need to be reassessed.
• Centacare will continue to support you with your own local service leader who will partner with you to help you get the best outcomes possible so that you can live safely and independently at home.

More information for existing clients

More information about the Support at Home program including funding levels, what services are available, participant contributions and other changes will be made available to you in the coming weeks and months. In the mean time, if you have any questions please contact your Service Leader or visit the Australian Government’s Support at Home website.

For more details about the Support at Home Program, visit our Support at Home landing page or download a copy of the Australian Government’s Support at Home booklet.

I’m new to home care, how do I apply for Support at Home?

If you’re ready to explore the Support at Home program or if you’d like more information about the assessment process, contact 1300 236 822. We’re here to answer your questions and help you through every step of the way.

PLEASE NOTE:

This page is current as at 25 March 2025. It is summary only and based on publicly available information regarding the new Support at Home program. The government is continuing to develop the Support at Home program, and therefore the information in this article is subject to change.