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Table of Contents
What is Support at Home?
‘Support at Home’ is Australia’s brand-new program for providing simplified and more sustainable aged care support, right in the comfort of your own home.
Effective 1 July 2025, Support at Home will replace the current Home Care Packages (HCPs) and Short-Term Restorative Care (STRC) programs to empower Australians with a unified assessment framework.
Support at Home promises greater access to quality in-home support and stronger service transparency (for less unspent funds) with a simpler yet stronger contribution model.
The new program is built to thoughtfully expand upon the current levels of care available, with extensive care in-mind, while reinforcing provider accountability and amplifying those support outcomes to provide a safer solution for the near 1.4 million older people independently ageing in Australia.
All for making sure you get the tailored care you need without having to leave the place you love most: Your home.
What does this mean for the Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP)?
From 1 July 2027, the Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP) is expected to be fully transitioned over to the new Support at Home program, while CHSP providers are still expected to adhere to the new Aged Care Act (and its registration model) from 1 July 2025.
All CHSP providers will soon receive further information regarding the new registration model and how to categorise accordingly.
Why is this change happening?
With limited and loosely defined options available, including unclear pricing and fees, the former program could be confusing and hard to follow. Now, Support at Home aims to solve this by providing older Australians with:
- A Single Assessment System: With the Australian Government’s new Integrated Assessment Tool, applicants for aged care support will now undergo a sole, in-depth assessment to determine their eligibility (for all assessment types: In-home aged care, flexible aged care programs, residential respite care, and entry to residential aged care).
- Peace of mind: Transitioning from four to now eight levels of support, the new program boasts an expansive range of support (and higher funding) available for better catering to the growing and diverse needs of older people, including elevated support for those with more challenging requirements.
- Greater transparency: With capped pricing and simplified service-based fees, there are less unspent funds for helping more people in need of aged care support.
- Stronger and timely support: With increased government funding, eligible recipients of aged home care can now access a wider range of support services everywhere from assistive technology and rehabilitation, to end-of-life and respite care.
Which types of Support at Home services are available?
With the new Support at Home program, Australians are granted access to the following types of services:
- Clinical care: Nursing care, allied health, nutrition, care management, and restorative care management.
- Independence: Personal care, social support, therapeutic services, respite, transport, assistive technology, and home modifications.
- Everyday living: Domestic assistance, home maintenance and repairs, and meal preparation and support.
- And more: For further information about the new Support at Home program, please read the Australian Government’s handbook here.
How are contributions changing?
Under Support at Home, your payments depend upon the services you actually use. This means that you’re only paying for the services you’ve actually received, that’s right, no more separate management fees. Now, recipients can expect a single cost to be presented upfront with care management, travel, admin, and other applicable fees, all bundled into one price.
Key points about contributions:
- For clinical services like nursing: no contribution fee is required.
- Independence services like help with bathing or dressing: Moderate contribution based on income.
- Daily living services like cleaning or gardening: Higher contribution, as these are less subsidised.
- Your exact contribution depends on your pension or retirement status, and generally follows a sliding scale based on income and service type.
For more information about participant contributions, please refer to the official handbook here.
How will service levels change?
If you’re familiar with the four levels of support that formerly made the assessment structure for aged home care, there are now eight levels involved.
Delivering a broader and more comprehensive range of options tailored to each care recipient’s unique needs with increased flexibility, so you can more easily adjust your current level of care as your circumstances change, ensuring support that evolves with you.
Your level will be reviewed as your needs change, and your funding will reflect it. Plus, you’ll have the option to access short-term boosts in care if something unexpected happens.
Under this new model, approved funding for ongoing support will be allocated across eight defined levels and paid quarterly. Any unspent or unused funds—up to $1,000 or 10% of the total (whichever is higher), can be carried over to the next quarter.
Explore the full features of the new Support at Home program here.
New packages and pathways
The new Support at Home program also introduces special pathways for extra and/or targeted care:
- A Restorative Care Pathway: Up to 12 weeks of allied health support, with a budget of approximately $6,000, to help regain independence after illness or injury.
- An End-of-Life Pathway: Dedicated care and funding of up to $25,000 across a three-month period, allocated to support you at home in your final months—recipients are required to use these funds within a maximum of 16 weeks.
- Assistive Technology and Home Modifications (AT-HM) Scheme: Funding of up to $15,000 or more (where extenuating circumstances are involved) under the AT-HM scheme is granted to improve your mobility within the home through greater accessibility adjustments and devices.
For all of the special pathways listed above, these can be added as needed without having to undergo a new care assessment.
How does utilisation work now?
Your Support at Home budget is broken into quarterly chunks (every 3 months). If you don’t use all of your budget each quarter, you can carry over up to $1,000 or 10% of your quarterly amount (whichever is greater) to the next quarter, any amount beyond this will expire.
This new system encourages planning and making sure you get the support you need, whether that’s extra visits, allied health, or helpful equipment.
Need help with the change?
Switching to Support at Home is a big change, but you’re not alone. Your current provider is sure to be in contact within the coming months to update your existing plan with your new agreement. If you’re unsure or wanting to explore your available options, please contact our friendly team here at CareAbout. We offer free, personalised advice to help you navigate these changes and find the right care about you.