CHA is a key member of the Australian Aged Care Collaboration (AACC) which today launched with a report entitled ‘It’s Time to Care About Aged Care’. More than 1,000 organisations - among them Catholic not for profit services - are behind the campaign.

The keystone report - published just days before a Royal Commission is due to table its final report into aged care - lays bare the problems that have beset the aged-care industry and calls on politicians to seize the moment and finally fix them.

More than 20 government aged-care reviews in 20 years have failed to adequately address the growing problem of an inadequate care system for older Australians.

Understaffing, underfunding, a lack of choice and long waiting lists are just some of the ongoing problems to plague the sector.

CHA Chief Executive Officer Pat Garcia said: “We can no longer afford to leave the aged-care system the way it is. For too long as a nation we have failed to prioritise the needs of our older Australians. That has to change. It has taken a Royal Commission to bring the inadequacies of aged-care into sharp focus, laying bare the problems that have been left unaddressed for two decades.

“Our members are proud to be part of a truly sector-wide campaign to ensure that this time aged care is not put back into the too-hard basket. We are issuing a challenge to this Parliament to tackle the problems by initiating bold reforms that will enable Australians to age with comfort and dignity. We cannot afford to wait any longer.”

Note to editors: Catholic Health Australia (CHA) is Australia’s largest non-government grouping of health and aged care services accounting for approximately 10 per cent of hospital-based healthcare in Australia. Our members also provide around 25 per cent of private hospital care, 5 per cent of public hospital care, 12 per cent of aged-care facilities, and 20 per cent of home care and support for older Australians.