Research that will have implications for the aged care sector and any potential findings from the Royal Commission.
The independent thinktank has released a ‘Recovery Book’ calling on the Federal Government to inject an extra $70 billion to $90 billion in extra economic stimulus to help the country recover from the pandemic recession.
You can download the plan here.
The Government has already spent around $160 billion to support businesses and households, but most of these packages – including those for the aged care sector – are due to wrap up at the end of September – just three months away.
The 122-page report makes a range of recommendations for the next six months, including:
- Winding down coronavirus stimulus programs more gradually to “avoid a severe economic crunch” – a package that will cost about $30 billion in 2020-21.
- Revamping the JobKeeper program to include university staff, casual workers, and temporary migrants and extending it beyond September for a further three months.
- Making permanent increases to JobSeeker (by at least $100 a week), Rent Assistance (by 40%), and childcare (to 95% for low-income households) – at a cost at least $21 billion over the next two years.
- Spending another $20-to-$40 billion on services, infrastructure, and building social housing to decrease unemployment back down to 5% or below by mid-2022.
- Keeping and adapting changes to the health system, such as improved access through telehealth, more use of out-of-hospital care, and better use of private hospital facilities.
The report concludes that the Government should “prioritise ruthlessly”.
“This is a huge agenda, almost all needed in the next six months. It will stretch government resources. Other less urgent (but important) reforms should wait until there is time and resources to do them properly.”
The question is: will the recommendations from the Royal Commission’s Final Report be among those to be sidelined by the Government? And will the sector do to ensure aged care stays on the radar?
