AAT rules on residential aged care assistance eligibility
A recent Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) decision has ruled on the legislative requirements for establishing eligibility for financial assistance for residential aged care accommodation under the Aged Care Act 1997.
A 92 year old war widow applied to have her assets assessed by the Department of Health and Ageing in order to establish her eligibility to receive financial assistance. The Department assessed her assets at $430, 371 and determined that she did not qualify as a “concessional” or “assisted resident” under the Act, for assistance.
This case considered the “concessional” and “assisted” definitions which required that she not be a homeowner for two years or more; or if she had been a homeowner, that her home must have been occupied by a carer for a period of two years. Here her daughter had provided periodic care to her mother, however, as she suffered from health conditions herself, she had not made her mother’s house her principal place of residence.
The tribunal upheld the original decision, reinforcing that in the absence of a proprietary right over the house it was necessary for her daughter to show that it was her principal place of residence.
It was also argued that the assessment of her assets was unfair, as it did not take into account the mortgage she obtained after she accepted a position at the aged care facility. Here the Tribunal held that the date on which assets must be assessed is the time at which the person enters residential care service, despite the fact that this may cause a disadvantage to the resident in some instances.
