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Aged Care Bill 2024

The Law Council of Australia provided a submission to the Senate Community Affairs Legislation Committee’s inquiry into the Aged Care Bill 2024 (the Bill).

On 13 March 2024, the Law Council provided a submission to the Department of Health and Aged Care (the Department) on the Exposure Draft Bill – Aged Care Bill 2023 (the Exposure Draft Bill).1 In that submission, the Law Council stated it was important that the Department takes the time to consult further on the proposed legislation, noting that reforming the aged care system is a complex and critical endeavour that requires careful consideration and thorough consultation with stakeholders, including aged care providers, health care professionals, advocacy groups, State and Territory governments, and the elderly population.2

The Bill contains many new substantive provisions, including: Chapter 2, Parts 4 and 5 which relate to prioritisation and place allocation; Chapter 4 which relates to the funding of aged care services; and Chapter 8, Part 2 which relates to review reconsideration and review of decisions.

The Law Council is disappointed by the short timeframe that has been provided to respond to such a significant area of reform and considers it inadequate. While the Law Council supports progressing the Bill towards its planned commencement date of 1 July 2025, a two-week consultation period is not long enough for meaningful and robust consultation with stakeholders and the public to ensure the proposed laws work as effectively and efficiently as possible.

In this context, the Law Council has not been able to review the Bill in its entirety, and has, instead, focused on key areas of concern and included discussion on other select topics that our Committees and Constituent Bodies have raised. Our comments should be seen as preliminary and potentially subject to amendment.

Read the full submission below.


1 Commonwealth Department of Health and Aged Care, Exposure draft – Aged Care Bill 2023 (14 December 2023).
2 Law Council of Australia, A new Aged Care Act: Exposure Draft – Consultation Paper No.2 (Submission, 13 March 2024), 29 [74].

Last Updated on 25/10/2024

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