$200 showers and a $136 gardener

Families are furious over the government’s new Support at Home program. When I say “families”, I mean the sandwich generation, middle-aged kids tasked with finding care for mum or dad while running their own lives.

As an aged care financial advisor for over 25 years, I’ve decoded these new pricing schedules. They are maddeningly complex. But this article isn’t about outrage; it’s about mastering the system’s logic so you get the best outcome.

Safety over lifestyle

The new system shifts focus away from lifestyle subsidies back to clinical support. The government still provides the exact same funding pool based on clinical need, however, if you have the means, you must now pay a larger share for non-clinical services designed to keep you independent. 

Out-of-pocket costs split into three buckets:

• Clinical care (nursing): 100% government-funded.
• Independence (personal care): You contribute 5% to 50%.
• Everyday living (cleaning/gardening): You contribute 17.5% to 80%.

The $200 shower

How does a shower cost $200 out-of-pocket? Working backwards from a recent example: A provider applied a $200/hr weekend surge rate with a two-hour minimum. (The baseline is ~$100/hr – but expect 20-30% higher on the Beaches). The individual was assessed for the maximum 50% co-contribution – assuming assets over $900k – creating a $200 shower.

A pensioner pays 5% ($20 out-of-pocket) for that exact same shower. However, $380 is deducted from their fixed quarterly package. 

The $136 gardener & hidden margins

Self-funded retirees pay 80% for “Everyday Living.” If a provider charges $170/hr for essential light gardening, you pay $136. Why so high? Hidden margins. The government strictly capped “Care Management” fees at 10%. To recover that lost administration revenue, providers artificially inflate the hourly rates of support workers.

Logic suggests finding a more cost-effective way to manage the yard. (Hint to Beaches kids: keep up those letter drops offering lawn mowing – it could fast-track your first DiroDi!)

Know the logic, avoid the traps

Be clear on exactly what mum or dad’s contribution to their services are.

Be clear on exactly how much of a package you have, and how far that money will go.

Be crystal clear on what the providers charge.

The reality is many providers are struggling with their invoicing and cannot clearly explain their pricing. Worse, new operators are popping up. Unscrupulous actors thrive on complexity.

This is exactly why we built the Later Life App – to cut through the complexity weighing down the sandwich generation. It doesn’t just take a PDF of a provider’s charges, it looks at the whole picture to help you calculate how much Age Pension mum or dad is eligible for and exactly what subsidies they should apply for. It translates Medicare and the PBS, outlines the scope of options like the Home Equity Access Scheme (HEAS) loan, and clarifies how they will be assessed.

Once they have their package, the app matches it with provider costs to all make sense. The better you master the logic, the more value you extract, the safer you are from surprises. This is about being prepared, instead of reacting.