Cobar is a remote town in western NSW. For 30 years the local Council has been supporting Lillian Bray Village, a 34 bed hostel and care facility and now wants somebody else to take over given its losses. Ratepayers are subsidizing its $2.5 million annual budget by $200,000 a year. Between 2005 and 2010 it made losses of $335,000; in the past two years it made a surplus after subsidies of $14,000. This is a tip of the iceberg. Each week another Council declares it needs to unburden itself of a community care facility.
Only in SATURDAY: why a dedicated Aged Care Minister should be top of Budget wish list
After two years in power, Anthony Albanese’s Labor Government has made headway on its aged care election promises – but the ‘aged care crisis’ is still far from over. “Labor will deliver new funding, more staff and better support to the...