Aged care complaints soar in wake of reforms
Aged care complaints surge following reform rollout
- Complaint spike: Daily complaints rise from 33 to 43 after new aged care reforms
- Volume increase: 2554 complaints lodged in two months under new Aged Care Act
- Low resolution: 447 complaints had no remedy and few decisions were changed
- Policy: Complaints drive reform changes including $1bn Support at Home adjustment
With the Australian Government already backflipping on key elements of last year’s reforms, new data shows complaints rose 30% after the changes took effect.
The Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission received 2,554 complaints in the first two months of the new Aged Care Act, from 1 November 2025 to 31 December 2025. By comparison, the agency received 9,939 complaints in the first 10 months of 2025.
The average number of complaints received per day increased from about 33 complaints per day to 43 complaints per day after the reforms came in.
Of the total complaints, 1,200 related to residential aged care, while 1,354 were mainly related to home care.
There were 447 complaints that received ‘no remedy’ and only 48 complaints resulted in a decision being changed.
In the two-month period, nine complaints resulted in a change to Government policy or legislation identified for change. Previously, only five such outcomes had been required in the previous five years.
The aged care reforms have come under fire as care recipients face new consumer contributions and assessments deliver lower-than-expected levels of Government support, particularly for Support at Home.
Higher prices under Support at Home have also proven controversial, though home care providers are required to charge higher fees under the program which removes administration charges as a separate fee.
The Government has already been forced to back down on some elements of the reforms, costing the Government an estimated $1 billion.
In April, Minister for Health, Disability and Ageing, Mark Butler and Minister for Aged Care Sam Rae announced personal care services offered through Support at Home, services such as showers, dressing, and continence support, would be free of charge alongside other clinical care from 1 October 2026.
