Hi Madras 56,Yes your father will also have to pay accommodation costs when he goes into a residential aged care home. However depending on your parents financial situation he can choose between a RAD, a combination of RAD and DAP or just the DAP.It would be very worthwhile for him to talk to the aged care home prior to his wife’s admission about the possibility of a twin room if that is what they would both prefer (assuming the home has double rooms) and ask whether there is any negotiation possible with regards to fees on this basis.Even if a shared room is not immediately available at the time of your mother’s admission it will give the home time to accommodate your fathers wishes as best they can when he decides to move there.RegardsJillreg
My mother needs to go into aged residential care. My father is Ok for teh moment but it will not be long before he needs to go too. When he goes in he wants to be with his wife. My father will fully pay the RAD for his wife. Will he have to pay another RAD when he goes in to care to be
Thank you everyone for your feedback. It is most appreciated. It is not easy to traverse the world of aged care so glad we can be of help.Jill
Well, informative posts!
Jill and Robert, thank you very much for your comments. I am very impressed and will recommend your site. These comments have saved me hours of sitting on the phone, waiting for a Centrelink advisor to tell me to make an appointment with the local office, who is usually booked out for 2 weeks ahead. Knowing what to do appears not to be such an easy task when you are dealing with pensions and accessing care. The government has attempted to make the task easy, with all their sites and information, but even there, confusion reigns. Once you actually have to to go through the paces, it means months and weeks of telephone conversations, making your way through firstly the Homecare packages and associated financials, contacting all the assisting bodies-and there is a plethora to decide from, and accessing whatever else the government funds. Then, when the nursing homes come into play, yet an other world opens up. I realy do not understand how old people are supposed to understand it all,how they are expected to be super organised to keep track of it all, and how they are supposed to make these huge decisions that can have an impact on the rest of their lives, on their own, when their children can’t even obtain the required answers at short notice. The waiting causes an enormous amount of stress to the elderly., just by not knowing what to do, and being in limbo.Your time is appreciated. I hope your site grows and you achieve what you are trying to achieve through this help.
Hi Pats,Robert Craven has come back with this advice.On the information provided ($150k assets) with your father moving to residential care, he will be assessed as owning 50% of the assets ie $75,000. As such he will be assessed as a low means resident. He will not be required to pay the Refundable Accommodation Deposit RAD.The basic daily care fee will not be subsidised. It is set at 85% of the basic single age pension and is currently $48.44 per day.With $75,000 in assessable assets, he will also be required to pay a small additional contribution towards his care. This fee is called a Daily Accommodation Contribution (DAC).You are correct, he will not be required to pay a Means Tested Care Fee.Although your mother will lose her Carer Allowance of $124.70 per fortnight, when your father moves to residential care, your parents will then be assessed as an illness separated couple. As such, their fortnightly pensions will both increase by $215.90 per for will fully cover his Basic Daily Care Fee and his Daily Accommodation Contribution. Your mother will be left with her age pension, currently $877.10 per fortnight plus $150,000 in financial assets.Yourmother can gift $10,000 and purchase two funeral bonds up to a maximum of $12,500 each and this would reduce their assessable assets by $35,000. The impact would be a small reduction in your fathers DAC, estimated at between $8 to $9 per day,If you buy a new car, fridge and washing machine, Centrelink will allow an immediate depreciation and will assess them at their realisable sale value. This would also result in a small reduction in the Daily Accommodation Contribution but it will reduce her cash reserves.The decision to gift funds, buy funeral bonds, purchase a new car, fridge and washing machine or retain the $150,000 will be a decision that your mother will need to make but she would be well advised not to spend her savings with the primary objectiv fees.Hope that helpsJill
Hi patsUnderstanding the finances around Aged Care is not easy. You have raised several issues on your post. I have passed them onto our expert Robert Craven from Affinity Aged care Financial Advice. We should be back to you shortly.Regards