Media releases 1997

COTA Media releases 1997

Media releases for 1997

Older people welcome greater certainty in aged care, 2 December 1997

Progress in aged care reforms, 13 November 1997

Relief at last for older Australians on nursing home entry fees, 5 November 1997

Government makes good start on making aged care October 1997reform more workable, 29

An Open letter to Senators and Members of the House of Representives - A New Approach to Aged Care Reform, 22 October 1997

Older people's lobby puts proposals to Minister on aged care, 22 Ocober 1997

Smoothing the way in aged care but questions remain, 1 October 1997

Older people on the land have a win at last, 16 September 1997

Older people squeezed out of private health insurance, 27 August 1997

Older people will benefit from private health insurance reforms - if doctors come to the party, 19 August 1997

Tax reform make or break for older people, 14 August 1997

Outrageous hospital fee plan still a risk for older people, 4 August 1997

'97 Budget better for older people but still some big holes, 13 May 1997

Older people shocked by private health insurance changes, 11 April 1997

Depression can cloud euthanasia decisions, 4 March 1997

Draft Aged Care Bill, 11 February 1997

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MEDIA RELEASE, 2 December 1997

OLDER PEOPLE WELCOME GREATER CERTAINTY IN AGED CARE

The Council on the Ageing today congratulated the Government for reaching a decision around the maximum fees for nursing home accommodation.

Under the arrangements announced yesterday by Family Services Minister, Mr Warwick Smith, annual fees for nursing homes will be capped at $4,380.

"At long last older people have some certainty about the fees and conditions that will apply when they enter a nursing home," said Mr Denys Correll, National Director of the Council on the Ageing.

"We realise that the industry has concerns about the adequacy of the amount to pay for capital improvements, but we also have to consider what older people are able to pay.

"We are also pleased about the arrangements which will allow pensioners to rent out their home to pay for the accommodation charge but not have the rental income affect their pension entitlement. Pensioners who rent their home will also have the value of the home exempted from the pension assets test for a period of five years.

"Many people will benefit from these measures. If they can rent out their home, they will be able to manage to pay the accommodation charge without having to sell their home.

"COTA appreciates the Government's sensitivity to older people's wish to keep the family home. It was never a question of money for older people. It was what the home represented - at the end of the day knowing they would always have a roof over their head. The home is what they have worked all their lives for.

"COTA is also pleased that the Government has decided to restore some of the funding - $20 million - for capital upgrading of nursing homes and hostels.

"COTA has always argued that the Government should pay for current upgrading needs before fees and charges are applied to new residents.

"The $20 million is a start but we think it is not nearly enough and we will be seeking further funding in the next federal budget," concluded Mr Correll.

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MEDIA RELEASE 13 November 1997

PROGRESS IN AGED CARE REFORMS

Council on the Ageing welcomes the results of the consultation on aged care conducted by the Minister for Family Services today.

Mr Denys Correll, national executive director of Council on the Ageing said "The Minister agreed to submit to Cabinet a proposal for developing a comprehensive national ageing strategy. The idea of the strategy was proposed by Council on the Ageing and will be much broader than residential care. An ageing strategy will be a splendid contribution to the International Year of Older Persons."

The Minister also agreed to request substantial further resources for communicating the aged care reforms. Once again COTA had proposed that communication in a form suitable for older people is essential. Largely older people need face-to-face or telephone contact to gain information. This would be backed up by printed information.

The meeting advocated most strongly that all aspects of aged care need further examination. In particular, further resources devoted to community care.

COTA agreed that the current arrangements announced over the last few weeks will remain in place while longer term solutions are identified based on detailed financial analysis. These longer term matters include finding the right levels for annual payments, ways to assist older people to organise their assets to pay annual payments, determining what capital is needed to improve the quality of accommodation, setting levels of interest to be charged on late payments of money owing to a service provider.

COTA advocated that people who have difficulty paying the $12 per day accommodation charge will be able to accumulate it against their estate at the much more reasonable rate of 6% interest (double the lower deeming rate rather than 8.863%).

Mr Correll concluded "that major steps were taken today to provide certainty and fairness in aged care."

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MEDIA RELEASE 5 November 1997

RELIEF AT LAST FOR OLDER AUSTRALIANS
ON NURSING HOME ENTRY FEES

Older people in Australia today expressed their immense relief that the Government has decided to give up its accommodation bond scheme for nursing homes - although they still need to find out how the recurring fees of around $4,000 will work.

Mr Denys Correll, Council on the Ageing National Executive Director said, "We congratulate the Prime Minister and the Government for listening to older Australians and the community on this matter."

"It was not just a question of the money. For older people and their families, the family home is a great symbol of security and freedom. The accommodation bond idea was just not the right one for this society.

"COTA has made strenuous efforts in recent weeks to get the Government to change its mind and look at other options which would enable people to retain their home. We were one of the first to see the new Minister for Family Services, the Hon. Warwick Smith MP and we have extensively lobbied all Senators and Members of Parliament with a raft of recommendations for changes to the aged care policies..

"The accommodation bond policy was very difficult from many aspects and as time went on many complicated situations came to our attention regarding other people living in the home, such as disabled adult children. We hope such people will be absolved of their worries under the new arrangements.

"At the moment, details of the changes are scant and we believe much of the detail still needs to be worked out. We will have to look carefully at how the new recurring fee arrangements will work. We look forward to working with the Government on making the policy work well for frail older people and their families.

"COTA is still worried that so much of the cost of nursing home care is being borne by residents. Any member of our family can need a nursing home at any time just as any of us might need to go to hospital. Do we expect someone who has had a motor vehicle accident to pay the cost of their hospital bed before they get treated?

"There is still going to be a need for capital funding for nursing homes and we are very worried about the run- down ones that need major capital injections which should come from the Government. The Government is in an excellent Budgetary position this year and can well afford to restore some of the funding that has been lost in recent years," concluded Mr Correll.

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MEDIA RELEASE 29 October 1997

GOVERNMENT MAKES GOOD START ON MAKING AGED CARE REFORM MORE WORKABLE

The Council on the Ageing (Australia) welcomes the Government's easing of the income testing and hopes this will be followed by positive action on accommodation bonds.

Mr Denys Correll, National Executive Director said today "Many of the proposals put to the Minister last week by Council on the Ageing have been adopted by the Government. These include deferring the income testing, exempting gifting of assets, reducing the number of years a person has to provide care for the house to be exempted from the assets test and not reducing existing hostel residents' income.

"The easing of the income testing will take the pressure off any existing residents who have been distressed by the potential impact of the changes.

"The assets testing of gifts was a nasty provision as many people would have been unaware that their generosity would be penalised later. By providing an exemption for gifts prior to 20 August 1996 largely removes this problem. There will be some people still caught and this is where the hardship provisions will need to be designed sensitively.

"The bond applies to nursing home residents from the day they are admitted. This is going to cause problems for the 40,000 nursing home residents admitted every year as 60 per cent come from acute hospitals and have Buckley's chance of sorting out a bond prior to admission. We ask the Minister to consider COTA's proposal to defer the assessment of bonds for nursing homes for 6 months after admission (51 per cent of residents leave or die within four months of admission.)

"The reducing of the care requirement from five to two years for bond assessment purposes is most welcome. COTA has had many calls from carers who have worked so hard but have not been resident for five years. Many would have lost their home without this concession. However some will still be caught out if they have a job.

"COTA looks forward to taking up the Minister's offer of meeting with him to discuss further options to enable people to pay the bond without selling their house. We cannot forget that they will be paying 9 per cent interest from day one on outstanding bond money. The needs of carers in paid employment also needs to be further discussed.

"Ever since the reforms were announced in August 1996, we have pleaded with the Government for an information strategy which involves older people themselves. There is still time to redress this problem. Much more needs to be done on this front."

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AN OPEN LETTER

22 October 1997

TO SENATORS AND MEMBERS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

A NEW APPROACH TO AGED CARE REFORM

Yesterday the Council on the Ageing met with the Hon. Warwick Smith, Minister for Family Services. We presented proposals to solve some of the dilemmas surrounding the aged care reforms.

The Council on the Ageing has received thousands of calls from older people in response to the aged care structural reforms which came into effect with the new legislation on 1 October 1997. I know many of you have also received calls from anxious, angry and distressed older people and their families in recent weeks.

COTA's view is that immediate action is needed to allay the fears of older people and to develop a fair and workable policy on funding for residential aged care.

We are asking for your support in making urgent and necessary changes to aged care legislation:

Accommodation bonds

Require nursing homes to defer the imposition of an accommodation bond for at least six and preferably 12 months: why put frail, older people through the trauma of a bond assessment when in many instances they are admitted for palliative care and all the nursing home will get is $1300 plus interest for a six month stay?

Make admissions to nursing homes on the basis of need: nursing home care is a result of a health crisis not a housing crisis. Delaying bond assessment for a minimum of 6 months ensures admission on the basis of need.

Make the assets test less harsh. COTA has proposed to the Minister that the harshness can be eased by either lifting the residual asset limit to five times the pension ($45,000) or excluding the family home from the assets test. The family home is exempt from the assets test for social security benefits. The Government's problems with the aged care reforms would be substantially solved by applying the same rules for the assessment of accommodation bonds.

Capping the bond is a minor issue, we need information on bond levels payable: the bond should be assessed by Department of Social Security (DSS)/CentreLink and each facility should be required to publish a scale of bonds which are available to the public. Older people and their families should not have to negotiate with facility proprietors. We have asked the Minister to have every facility's bond level published and on a web site so that groups such as COTA can make these available to older citizens and their families.

Restore partial funding for residential aged care: the net effect of implementing these measures will require some commitment of Government funding to meet the shortfall.

Alternatives to Residential Care

Improve funding for community care: there is an urgent need to provide more community service to assist people with low and high care needs to remain in their own homes.

Provisions for carers and others living in the home.

Make adequate provision for the wide range of circumstances in which homes are shared by carers or are part-owned by other family members, or persons other than a spouse: homes are exempt from bond asset testing if a spouse or full-time carer for five years, eligible for an income support payment continues to live in it. There are, however, a wide range of circumstances where the home is shared on a full or part-time basis by people who do not fit the narrow criteria set by the Government for exemptions in this area.

Reduce the time a carer is required to live in the home from five to two years to avert the sale of the home: the five year co-residency requirement is causing distress to many carers and is proving a harsh and unjustifiable measure. In addition, the requirement that they be eligible for an income support payment is unfair to people who have retained jobs in very difficult circumstances. In both these instances excluding the house from the asset test would of course solve this mounting problem.

Income tested fee

Income from variable fees to go into a pool for capital and other aged care services: the arrangements to apply from 1 November 1997 mean the variable fees ($80 million) go to consolidated revenue.

Ensure that no existing resident will be paying a higher daily fee than they are at present: a cause of great distress is the substantial increase in fees for many residents on 1 November 1997 as a result of changes in income testing.

Abandon the DSS gifting provision under the income and assets test until people likely to be affected now and in the future are given adequate notification of the policy change: many existing and future nursing home residents, not receiving a pension will be caught by DSS five year gifting provisions under the new income testing arrangements which will result in an increase in their fees.

Information and assistance

Adequate funding for a comprehensive information and assistance strategy: a major problem for the Government has been its inadequate information provision and assistance for older people over the last twelve months. It is crucial that this gap be filled as quickly as possible. We need:

- a well-resourced 1800 help-line

- plenty of brochures and kits widely circulating in community languages

- publicity as to where people can get information and assistance

Resourcing of consumer groups to help older people understand the changes: the Council on the Ageing in each State and Territory and other consumer groups have been at the front line in fielding older people's and their families, questions and concerns. They urgently need funding for this job. Most calls involve distress as well as a quest for information and therefore require time and care.

Hardship provisions

Make explicit the hardship provisions by which people can be exempt from the financial requirements of residential care: the hardship criteria should be a matter for further discussion with key stakeholders and be publicly available.

Please give these matters your consideration. Do not hesitate to contact our national office if you would like to discuss these proposals.

Yours faithfully

JUNE HEALY OAM
President

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MEDIA RELEASE 22 October 1997

OLDER PEOPLE'S LOBBY PUTS PROPOSALS TO MINISTER
ON AGED CARE

The Council on the Ageing (COTA) yesterday presented a bold, new plan for salvaging the policy crisis in residential aged care to the Hon. Warwick Smith, Minister for Family Services.

Mr Denys Correll, National Executive Director, said, "The current legislation will not work. The Government now must respond to the concerns of older people. COTA was encouraged by the Minister's openness to fixing the problems that are emerging.

"Since the new aged care legislation, older people across Australia have registered their distress and anger at the Government's new nursing home policy which will require them to sell their home for nursing home care while imposing a range of other fees and conditions. The fees provide no new money for aged care.

"COTA has had long standing reservations about the policy. Now the community has realised the full impact and are rising up in protest."said Mr Correll.

"Ideally, the Government should scrap the accommodation bond for nursing homes and eventually they may be forced to do this.

"In the meantime, we asked the Minister to defer assessment and payment of the accommodation bond for the first six months after admission to a nursing home. This gives the person, their family or advocate time to think through the options and work out whether a return to the home is likely. The nursing home only gets $1300 plus interest in the first six months so it is no great loss to them.

"51 per cent of nursing home residents leave or die within four months of admission."

COTA states that all admissions to nursing homes must be based on a needs assessment in the first instance. Money can be considered later - at the six months point when it will be clearer what is the appropriate course of action. Most admissions come about due to a health crisis not a housing problem. Accommodation bond assessment blurs the entry issue.

COTA, in its meeting with the Minister, said that there does not need to be a maximum bond so long as every nursing home publishes their range of bonds. COTA asked that the retrospective assessment of assets be scrapped and that any fees go to care not to consolidated revenue. The hardship provisions are yet unpublished and must be available. Finally the information to older people has been woeful.

The Council on the Ageing is writing to all Senators and Members of Parliament to seek their support for these and related proposals.

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MEDIA RELEASE: 1 October 1997

SMOOTHING THE WAY IN AGED CARE BUT QUESTIONS REMAIN

The Council on the Ageing welcomes the release today of the Aged Residential Users Guide at the commencement of the aged care reforms.

Mr Denys Correll, COTA's National Executive Director, said today, "The changes to aged care which commence today mark the most significant changes to residential services for over a decade. It is important that older people and their carers have information regarding the changes. The user's guide is the first step in that process.

"COTA has been involved in the preparation of material to inform older people of the changes. To assist older people, COTA will work with the Department of Health and Family Services in conducting information sessions in each State and Territory. Because these changes are so large, there will be problems. The review process enshrined in the legislation is crucial to correct problems that will emerge.

"Financial advice will be required by older people as they make decisions on accommodation bond payments and the regular daily fees. In addition, there are a number of issues that COTA will be watching:

Will the residual asset allowance of $22,500 cause hardship?

Will nursing home upgrading occur as per the original intention of accommodation bonds?

What will happen to residents in facilities not certified or accredited?

Will the Department give resources to groups such as COTA to provide information services to older people and their families?

Will nursing homes keep bonds within reasonable levels?

Will periodic payments of bonds be a realistic alternative to full bond payments?

Will enough resources be available to provide for upgrading?

Will the complaints mechanism be in place soon and wide publicity given to encourage consumers to use the service?

How will hospitals cope with the changes given that 60% of admissions to nursing homes come from acute care?

Mr Correll concluded "Yes. This is a difficult time but all parties involved in the changes have attempted to smooth the path for older people".

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MEDIA RELEASE 16 September 1997

OLDER PEOPLE ON THE LAND HAVE A WIN AT LAST

The Council on the Ageing today congratulated the Government for taking some fair and progressive initiatives to help older Australians on the land into retirement.

"The plight of older farmers has been a running sore in terms of Australian public policy for many years. At COTA we are very appreciative that something has been done at last," Mr Denys Correll, COTA's Executive Director said in Melbourne.

Under the new Retiring Farmer Assistance program, older farmers will have an opportunity over the next three years to pass on the family farm to the next generation. They will now be able to get the Age Pension without being excluded for five years by the Social Security gifting provisions.

Mr Correll said, "While the exemption from the gifting provision is not ongoing, it will be of tremendous benefit in helping rural older people and their families to make important and necessary adjustments under present environmental and economic conditions.

"COTA has been most concerned about older people on the land for some years. We have had examples of very significant hardship where older farmers have clung on to the family farm when they really should retire. Or where they have literally gone without an income when they have passed on the family farm to their sons and daughters.

"We also welcome those elements of the Government's rural package which will help to boost rural communities and foster adjustment. These parts of the package will help many other older Australians not yet of pension eligibility age.

"The $45,000 re-establishment grants may be a great help to people over 50 on farms that are no longer viable while the one year eligibility for income support will help others to think clearly about their options.

"We also think it is very important that the Government has made a commitment to fund research into the changes occurring in rural communities. We expect the ageing population in rural Australia would be an important component of that research," concluded Mr Correll.

Mrs Kath Brewster, a resident in rural New South Wales represented COTA on the Government's Special Rural Taskforce which proposed a number of these innovative proposals.

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MEDIA RELEASE 27 August 1997

OLDER PEOPLE SQUEEZED OUT OF PRIVATE HEALTH INSURANCE

More older people will be forced out of private health insurance in view of the forthcoming rises in premiums and a copayment for a stay in a private hospital, according to the Council on the Ageing (COTA).

"Older people have registered their dismay about the rises in October in the MBF fund announced yesterday," said Mr Denys Correll, COTA's executive director.

One older person writing to COTA yesterday said:

"Surely, Michael Wooldridge, the Minister for Health, realises these constant rises in fees are the cause of so many people pulling out of private health insurance? For me and probably many more like me who are single pensioners there comes a time when we say - that's it - we cannot afford the extra expense imposed on us by the funds!!

"Other funds are sure to follow the MBF lead. The squeeze on the incomes of older people is intense already - for many the increased premiums and prospects of paying an additional $50 per night if they go to a private hospital will be the last straw," said Mr Correll.

"Older people without taxable incomes - people on very low incomes - were not able to benefit from the tax rebate for private health insurance that the Government announced in the 1996 Budget.

"COTA believed that this was a poorly targetted measure and the money should have gone to boosting the public hospital system. The ineffectiveness of the measure is being proved by the continuing decline of people in private health insurance.

"Older people must have their confidence restored in the public health system.

"The private health insurance system cannot be relied on any more to provide an adequate service for older people and many others in the community."

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MEDIA RELEASE 19 August 1997

OLDER PEOPLE WILL BENEFIT FROM PRIVATE HEALTH INSURANCE REFORMS - IF DOCTORS COME TO THE PARTY

Older people welcomed today, the Minister for Health's announcement that consumers of health care will be able to receive up-front quotes before hospital admission. The Council on the Ageing was responding to the Federal Government's reforms in private health insurance.

"One of the big fears for older people going to hospital, is the nasty surprises they receive when returning home," said Executive Director, Mr Denys Correll.

"We have heard countless stories at COTA, some quite horrific, of older people who have returned home from hospital after a serious illness or operation, to face an endless flow of bills for their treatment that the private health insurance company did not cover."

"Most older people struggle and go without other things in order to keep up their private health insurance payments. They deserve peace of mind."

"It is time that the medical lobbies faced up to the consumer view that doctors' current billing practices are unacceptable. It is totally unreasonable to continue a system which does not provide prior information on costs."

"COTA is concerned about changes to the private health insurance rebates for nursing home type patients which will mean that they receive a lower level rebate than acute patients. We appreciate that there have been problems with some hospitals providing a lower level of care but securing a payment for acute care for people waiting to go to a nursing home."

"However, this change in policy is coming on top of the new aged care legislation coming into force on 1 October 1997. If the changes to rebates for nursing home type patients proceed, an older person could pay $300 per day while waiting for a nursing home bed. Some people wait up to three months for a bed - $27,000 out of pocket!"

"COTA urges the Government to delay the private health insurance change for nursing home type patients until mid-1998 in order to give the aged care reforms time to bed down."

"We will be watching developments on the issue of unfunded lifetime community rating with much interest and look forward to close consultations with the Government on this," concluded Mr Correll.

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MEDIA RELEASE 14 August 1997

TAX REFORM: MAKE OR BREAK FOR OLDER PEOPLE

Tax reform held both risks and promises for older Australians. This is the view of the Council on the Ageing Executive Director, Mr Denys Correll.

"A tax package which starts to generate some additional revenue to pay for much needed services for the community is critical. "

"The spending cuts of the last two Budgets have been hard on older people. They have had big losses through:

increased costs for pharmaceuticals;
entry charges for nursing homes;
loss of $600 million in aged care over four years;
loss of Commonwealth dental health program;
the requirement that unemployed people over 55 tap into any superannuation assets before claiming social security payments;
user charges for Home and Community Care programs."

"However, tax reform for older people could mean that they are much worse off if the package is not well-designed and progressive."

"The majority of older people are on fixed incomes. Most are on incomes that do not attract tax at all, under the present system."

"If we move more to an indirect tax system, these older people will find themselves suddenly in the tax net. Few older people have a capacity to save. Their income is spent on basic living costs. They would face a massive impost under a GST."

"For older people who get an age pension, it will be possible for the Government to compensate them. But there will be many problems in ensuring that they are not worse off and in maintaining the value of the compensation over time."

"But how can the Government compensate those older people who are living on income from shares, investments, annuities or superannuation?"

"How will these people be compensated?"

"We must remember that older people have already paid tax on the money that they have invested. Under a GST, they will effectively be paying twice."

"COTA will be closely watching the debate on tax reform in coming months. We want the debate to be very broad and canvass a wide range of options," concluded Mr Correll.

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MEDIA RELEASE 4 August 1997

OUTRAGEOUS HOSPITAL FEE PLAN STILL A RISK FOR OLDER PEOPLE

The Council on the Ageing today welcomed the Federal Government's decision to maintain rehabilitation and palliative care as compulsory provisions in private health insurance.

"Rehabilitation and palliative care are very important components of private health insurance for older people," said Mr Denys Correll, National Executive Director for the Council on the Ageing (Australia).

"As people age, the risks of sustaining an illness or injury that require rehabilitation increase - hip replacements being the classic example of this."

"Sadly, also the risks of acquiring a terminal illness that requires palliative care also increase with age."

The Council on the Ageing, however, has serious concerns about possible changes in private health insurance rules covering older people in hospitals who are awaiting a place in a nursing home.

The new rules would mean that people classified as nursing home patients would only be paid at the rate applicable for nursing home care which is much lower than the rate for hospital care.

"This would mean that an elderly person could end up with a substantial bill for hospital costs because of the difference between the actual hospital fee and the nursing home level rebate," said Mr Correll.

"We believe that this proposal is quite outrageous. As if it isn't difficult enough for older people, their families and friends when the decision is made

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MEDIA RELEASE 13 May 97

'97 BUDGET BETTER FOR OLDER PEOPLE BUT STILL SOME BIG HOLES

The Council on the Ageing tonight expressed its relief that there was no more cuts to aged care in the 97-98 Budget.

Mrs June Healy, COTA National President, speaking after the Budget said "The Government has definitely improved its outlook on community needs in this Budget compared to the last."

"But we cannot ignore some big holes in provision when it comes to needs around public housing and employment for older people."

"We are particularly pleased about the initiatives for carers which provide for a substantial increase in the Domiciliary Nursing Care Benefit, funding for education and support for carers of people with dementia and another program of needs assessment, information and advice for carers."

"We appreciate the initiatives to improve acute care in the public hospital system. This was a major recommendation of our Budget submission for this year in light of the grave concerns older people have about the public hospital system."

"Another positive was the restoration of funds for palliative care. However, we would also like to have seen a restoration of funds for dental health. This will remain a major deficit in this Government's health policy."

With regards to the new Pension Bonus Plan of the Government, the Council on the Ageing thinks that the program is not likely to help many people.

"The reality is that many older people find it very difficult to retain jobs into older ages in today's highly competitive job market."

"The Government really needs to be providing retraining for older people if they need it as well as tackling employer's negative attitudes to older workers."

"Long term unemployment is a major problem for many older people, as it is for the rest of the community. Many older people go onto pensions or take out their superannuation because there are insufficient opportunities for suitable employment."

"We are most concerned about the reduction of $50 million per year in funding for public housing. Already there are major problems for older people in gaining access to public housing and there is no room for further cut-backs."

The Council on the Ageing was pleased that the Government's approach to reducing outlays for pharmaceuticals precluded an increase in the copayments for people on low incomes. However, there could be problems with the new approach which could in effect mean an increase in prices of some important pharmaceuticals.

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MEDIA RELEASE 11 April 1997

OUTRAGEOUS HOSPITAL FEE PLAN STILL A RISK FOR OLDER PEOPLE

The Council on the Ageing today welcomed the Federal Government's decision to maintain rehabilitation and palliative care as compulsory provisions in private health insurance.

"As people age, the risks of sustaining an illness or injury that require rehabilitation increase - hip replacements being the classic example of this."

"Sadly, also the risks of acquiring a terminal illness that requires palliative care also increase with age."

The Council on the Ageing, however, has serious concerns about possible changes in private health insurance rules covering older people in hospitals who are awaiting a place in a nursing home.

The new rules would mean that people classified as nursing home patients would only be paid at a much lower rate than that for acute care.

"We believe that this proposal is quite outrageous. As if it isn't difficult enough for older people, their families and friends when the decision is made that a nursing home is needed."

"The costs of hospital care will create pressures to place the patient in the first nursing home that comes up regardless of its suitability and this will lead to further problems for the older person and their family."

"The Council on the Ageing urges the Federal Government to throw out this proposal on the grounds of basic common-sense, equity and the needs of frail older people and their families at a time of crisis," concluded Mr Correll.

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MEDIA RELEASE 4 March 1997

DEPRESSION CAN CLOUD EUTHANASIA DECISIONS

Desire for euthanasia is not uncommon in older people who are depressed. However, they often change their minds after the depression has been treated.

These findings are the latest contribution to the euthanasia debate. They are the result of a study reported in the February 1997 issue of the Australian Journal on Ageing.

Dr Stuart Hooper, a Sydney psychiatrist, and his colleagues asked 18 elderly patients suffering major depression about their preferences for euthanasia. Almost half (8) said they would accept euthanasia if it were offered.

Following successful treatment of their depression, only 2 patients continued to express a preference for euthanasia.

"There is mountin evidence that euthanasia occurs whether legislation allows it or not," says Dr Hooper. " So doctors practising euthanasia must be mindful that depression can cloud people's judgment and affect their decisions."

Further complicating the issue, he suggests, is the fact that depression in elderly people is relatively common, and its diagnosis particularly difficult, Doctors need to be aware that much depression - possibly up to 80% - goes undetected.

"It's encouraging, therefore, that the NT legislation requires a psychiatrist to assess for depression any person requesting euthanasia, " Dr Hooper says. "However it is also important to realise that, as our study shows, not all depressed parties have impaired decisional capacity. So if a depression diagnosis automatically forbids euthanasia under NT legislation, we may be denying some patients an option they would have chosen regardless of their depression."

Dr Hooper's study is one of the few involving patients. Most research on euthanasia involves surveys of the general population or of health professionals.

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MEDIA RELEASE 11 February 1997

DRAFT AGED CARE BILL

Council on the Ageing welcomes the release of the draft Aged Care Bill 1997. Mr Denys Correll, national executive director of COTA said today "The Aged Care Bill reflects the work undertaken by consumers, service providers, unions and Government since the1996 Commonwealth Budget".

"The consultation undertaken by the Government has been thorough within the limits allowed by Government policy and the timetable to introduce changes to aged care by the first of July".

Council on the Ageing welcomes the Minister for Family Services agreement to many of the enhancements to the changes which will benefit consumers. Older people welcome the Government's commitment to ensure that those people with few or no assets will be guaranteed access. The Minister has emphasised access to care will be based on need.

The changes mean greater financial contributions by new residents of nursing homes and hostels. The increased user payments reflect the Government's commitment to reducing the budget deficit.

"At this stage it is impossible to determine the full impact of such major changes to aged care. The opportunity to comment on the draft legislation may identify some problems.". Mr Correll, however, said "Council on the Ageing calls on the Minister for Family Services to implement an ongoing community-based mechanism to monitor the impact of the aged care structural reforms on older people and their carers. In addition, Council on the Ageing seeks support from the Minister for community based information strategies to inform older people of the changes.

For comment on any media releases or articles please contact

Council on the Ageing (Australia)
Level 2, 3 Bowen Crescent
Melbourne 3004
Tel: (03) 9820 2655 Fax: (03) 9829 9886
email: cota@cota.org.au

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Council on the Ageing (Australia)
Level 2, 3 Bowen Crescent, Melbourne Vic 3004
Tel (03) 9820 2655 Fax (03) 9820 9886
email cota@cota.org.au