Taking Temporary Leave from your Home Care Package

Is it time for a little summer holiday, or do you need to spend some time away from home for health reasons? What will happen to your Home Care Package services while you’re away?

Can I pause my Home Care Package to take a leave of absence?

Yes! You can take a leave of absence from your Home Care Package. In order to do this, you must notify your provider with the specific dates of your leave and they will pause your services.

Give your provider as much notice as you possibly can so that they can arrange the changes with your carers, cleaners, gardeners and other support workers. Plenty of notice may not always be possible, especially if you want to pause your Home Care Package because of health or hospitalisation reasons – just do your best, your provider will understand if your circumstances mean that you can only give a short amount of notice.

Reasons for taking leave from your Home Care Package

You can take leave from your Home Care Package for any reason.

You may want to join the family on a holiday, or a trip away somewhere, or you may be experiencing some health problems and need to stay in hospital for a while.

Time in transition care or respite care are also good reasons to pause your Home Care Package services, especially if they are for an extended period of time.

If you’re feeling like you want a break from receiving Home Care, you can also request to pause your services for a while. You might feel like you need some space, and some time without having support workers visit you in your home.

Sometimes it can be overwhelming and frustrating having care workers in your home. If pausing services won’t affect your health and your ability to stay safely in your home, taking a short leave from care and support might be just the thing you need to recharge and reset.

Fees while on leave from your Home Care Package

You may still be required to pay some fees while you are taking your leave of absence. If you are paying an income tested fee, this will continue to be the case.

Income Tested Fee (ITF)

No matter the circumstances of your leave, if you have an income tested fee, you will still be required to pay it. If your leave is less than 28 days, you will be required to pay the full amount of your income tested fee even though you are not receiving any services. If your leave is longer than 28 days, you’ll pay your full ITF for the first 28 days, and then 25% of your ITF after 28 days.

Learn everything you need to know about the Income Tested Fees here.

Basic Daily Fee

If you pay a basic daily fee to your provider, they may still charge this while you’re on leave. A provider can choose to continue charging you a basic daily fee if your leave is for a holiday or if you’re in hospital. If your leave is due to Residential Respite or Transition Care, they cannot charge the Basic Daily Fee.

Each provider is different so you will need to confirm the exact fees payable with them.

For further information on Home Care Package leave and fees, Contact CareAbout Today!