Hi
My mother is in aged care facility and she has to pay a RAC of $356364.93 which is more than what the room is advertised as $350000.00
I don’t understand why she has to pay more than what the room is worth. I have asked the facility why as I thought you couldn’t pay more than what the room is worth,& they responded that is what centrelink says she has to pay.
Could you please clarify this for me please.
Please see figures I have cut & pasted from email the facility sent me. But im still not understanding why she has to pay more than what the room is worth ($350K) Please tell me if im missing something. Per day Basic Daily Care Fee (BDCF) paid RAC.
Hi Lea,
According to the government’s My Aged Care “all aged care homes are required to publish their maximum accommodation costs for their various rooms on the My Aged Care website. You and the home can negotiate and agree to a lower price but you cannot be charged more than the maximum published price”. Obviously the discussion you have had with the aged care home manager has not clarified your situation so I would ask them to explain in more detail why you have an added amount of $6,000 to your RAC eg Is it because your mother’s room is a slightly higher quality than the room advertised? Has the room rate not been updated etc. Whether you have to pay towards your room or not, everyone needs to agree to a room price in writing . You need to be satisfied with the price before you do so. The aged care operator should be able to explain the pricing discrepancy with you -clearly and concisely -but if that is still unsatisfactory then Nellie’s suggestion about contacting Department Human Services (DHS) is most probably your next step. You can call them on 1800 227 475.
Regards,
Jill
Hi Lea,
Can you get onto Centrelink yourself and find out from them directly if this facility is telling you the truth. It seems wrong to me if they’re trying to get another $6000 plus when the room is advertised at $350k. Also has the family sat down with a financial advisor?