Talking Aged Care

13/10/2026

Free guides, Adelaide! We’re coming to DAL Expo 2026.

Swing by Booth 91B on Friday and Saturday for your free copy of the Aged Care Guide.

10am to 3pm, at the Jubilee Pavilion, Adelaide Showground. See you there!

07/10/2026

A will covers the house and the savings. It rarely covers Mum's jewellery, Dad's tools, or the photo albums, and that's often where families actually fall apart. My TAP co-founder Lisa Wendland says it starts small: "One person takes a piece of jewellery because Mum apparently told them they could have it, somebody else discovers it is gone and suddenly the argument isn't really about the jewellery anymore."

A simple fix: walk through the house, picture who'd want what, and write it down alongside the will. It's a small step that can prevent a fracture that never heals.

Read about it here 👇

A Will covers the big assets, but experts say it’s the small, sentimental items that most often tear families...

05/10/2026

A standard smoke alarm assumes you can hear it, see it, and understand what it means, and for someone living with dementia, that's not always true. Older Australians already make up half of all winter fire deaths.

Brooks Australia CEO Cathy Brand says the fix isn't complicated: alarms in bedrooms and living areas (not just hallways), clear pathways near heaters and stovetops, and alternatives like strobe lights or vibrating pillow alerts for those with hearing loss. With dementia cases projected to pass one million by 2065, it's worth acting before a near-miss, not after.

Read about it here👇

A smoke alarm only helps if someone can hear it, see it and understand it. Here’s how families can make home fire...

30/09/2026

Aged care agreements can run dozens of pages, and the costs that catch families out aren't hidden, they're just buried in the fine print. Higher Everyday Living Fees, accommodation cost changes, retirement village exit fees: easy to miss when you're focused on getting the right care sorted.

Paralegal Bindy Marshall's advice is simple: get independent legal advice before you sign anything. Services Australia's Financial Information Service is free, and OPAN (1800 700 600) can point you in the right direction too.

Read about it here 👇

Aged care and retirement village agreements can hide unexpected fees in the fine print. A paralegal explains why...

06/09/2026

Family carers pour everything into logistics — appointments, meds, grab rails — but rarely answer one question: what happens if you get sick for a week?

This piece is a good gut-check for carers: know who steps in for the first 48 hours, write down routines and prescriptions so they're not locked in one person's head, and register with My Aged Care early so you're not starting from scratch in a crisis. Self-care isn't the fix here. A backup plan is.

Read about it here 👇

Most families plan for a parent’s care, but not for what happens if the carer gets sick. Here’s how to build...

03/09/2026

Some welcome relief for household budgets: single pensioners will get an extra $36.80 a fortnight (up to $1,237.70), and couples an extra $55.60 combined (up to $1,866.00). Rent Assistance and JobSeeker are also rising.
COTA Australia's Patricia Sparrow says it won't fix everything, but "when household budgets are stretched this tightly, every dollar counts."
Deeming rates are also nudging up from 20 September, so it's worth checking whether your savings and term deposits are actually earning at or above the new benchmark rates.
Read about it here 👇

Age Pension rates rise from 20 September, with extra support for renters and jobseekers too. Here’s what’s...

01/09/2026

CHSP is here to stay 🎉

Big news for older Australians and their families: the Commonwealth Home Support Program won't be merged into Support at Home after all. The government has confirmed CHSP will run independently until at least 30 June 2029, after providers and communities pushed back on plans to fold it in.

Minister Sam Rae put it simply: "You told us that folding it into a program built for something else would break the parts of CHSP that work best. We agree with you."

Community consultations on what comes next kick off next month.

Read about it here 👇

The Commonwealth Home Support Program will stay independent until at least 2029, rather than merging into Support at...

26/08/2026

Choosing between home care, a retirement village or residential aged care can feel overwhelming, but a few simple habits make it easier.

Start with the person's actual needs, not the brochure. Visit in person around mealtime. Ask whether care staff are permanent or largely agency. And don't be afraid to keep your shortlist short, four or five options is plenty.

If you're just starting to look into aged care for someone you love, here's where to begin 👇

Choosing between home care, a retirement village or residential aged care can feel overwhelming. Here’s what to...

25/08/2026

A Four Corners investigation, "The Waiting Game," has revealed how a software algorithm, not clinicians, now decides how much in-home aged care funding older Australians receive. Case studies include a 96-year-old blind woman whose funding stayed unchanged for 12 years, and a family who waited close to six months for shower rails and a ramp.

The government points to shorter assessment wait times. Four Corners found the median wait from application to actually receiving approved care is ten months, with more than 4,800 people dying in 2024-25 while waiting for funding they'd already been approved for.

Read what the investigation uncovered 👇

A Four Corners investigation examined the algorithm now deciding aged care funding levels, and the long waits, appeals...

23/08/2026

If you or someone you love has motor neurone disease, this is worth knowing: MND now qualifies for urgent priority access to Support at Home funding, meaning support can arrive within about a month instead of a long wait.

The change applies retrospectively too, so people already assessed and waiting are moved to the front of the queue. Here's what changed, who it applies to, and the exact steps to get or confirm your priority 👉

Motor neurone disease now qualifies for urgent priority under Support at Home. Here’s what changed, who it applies...