From 1 July 2019, the government wants Home Care Providers to improve transparency around their pricing, making it easier for consumers to compare. Therefore you need to make the following changes:
1. Inclusion of your Pricing Schedule in the Home Care Agreement – the schedule will include a single price for the most common services. If you contract services out to other providers, you can include a minimum and maximum price taking into account the various charges from your contractors.
2. The Pricing Schedule needs to include the 5 common home care service categories as shown in the table below.
3. The Pricing templates (as shown) need to be completed and published on the My Aged Care website by 1 July 2019
4. Other Costs will replace the current Administration Costs and include:
a. Package Management Costs – based on the cost of managing the package which may include preparing the monthly consumer statements, managing package funds and compliance and quality assurance activities.
b. Maximum Exit Amount.
c. Per kilometre fee if you charge the consumer for staff travel to/from their place. If you contract this out, you will include a minimum and maximum price.
d. Any Other Administration Costs will be included in your unit price. This may include costs such as marketing, office rent, insurance etc.
5. Care management may include:
· reviewing the Home Care Agreement and care plan
· coordination and scheduling of services
· ensuring the care is aligned with other supports
· providing a point-of-contact for the home care recipient or their support network
· ensuring care is culturally appropriate
. identifying and addressing risks to the home care recipient’s safety.
You need to make sure you can justify your charges to the consumer and ensure they understand what they are being charged for.
If you are interested in chatting about your consumer on-boarding to make the process more efficient and less costly, contact Debra Ward via the Care Collaborator web page: www.carecollaborator.com.au, email debra@carecollaborator.com.au or mobile 0438 020 728.
