Aged care Cost Collection contract blows out as 185 new residential sites added
HealthConsult’s Residential Aged Care Cost Collection 2024 contract has more than doubled in value to over $17 million, as the Sydney-based consultancy surveys 150% more providers than originally planned.
The motivation for the increased survey scope is to improve the relevance and quality of the data collected, the Independent Health and Aged Care Pricing Authority (IHACPA) told The Weekly SOURCE.
IHACPA originally signed the Residential Aged Care Cost Collection 2024 contract with HealthConsult in May 2024. The contract was valued at $7.7 million, and included scope to undertake an aged care costing study at 120 aged care sites.
In January 2025, IHACPA requested a further 120 sites be included in the project, and a $5 million variation was made to the contract.
The most recent variation to the contract occurred in October 2025, when IHACPA expand the size of the collection by a further 65 residential aged care sites at a cost of $2.8 million - taking the total contract to $17.2 million.
Burdensome cost collection methods under microscope
On top of this work, IHACPA has engaged HealthConsult to look into new cost allocation methods that are less burdensome for aged care facilities. This component of the project is valued at $1.2 million and was in the initial contract as an option.
You can view the contract details here.
The expansion of the survey scope comes following submissions to IHACPA’s consultations on its Pricing Framework for Australian Residential Aged Care Services 2025-26.
A submission from the UTS Ageing Research Collaborative said the sample size of IHACPA’s 2023 Costing Study was too small. Several stakeholders also noted the cost collection processes were burdensome.
What are Cost Collections?
Cost Collections are costing studies that help IHACPA understand how much residential aged care and Support at Home services cost. Their findings influence the costing advice IHACPA gives the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing to determine aged care pricing, including AN-ACC.
Ernst & Young conducted the Support at Home Cost Collection 2024. Scyne Advisory has been appointed to conduct the Support at Home Cost Collection 2025.
In September 2025, IHACPA appointed consulting firm Taylor Fry to a $655,000 contract to independently validate its aged care pricing advice as part of IHACPA’s annual quality-assurance processes.
