Yesterday was a shocking indictment on the politicians in this country.
Both Anthony Albanese and Scott Morrison laid bare that they don’t care about the welfare of the 400,000 most vulnerable and defenseless and scared Mums and Dads and the singles isolated in their homes waiting on erratic home care support or living under crisis conditions in aged care.
Things are so bad that the unions and operators yesterday joined together to plead for the ADF (army, navy, air force) to provide support.
Mr Morrison responded in his COVID-19 press conference:
“There aren't magic workforces that can just turn up and provide the sort of care that you need in health care. You need to have people who are trained, and that is true also in aged care.”
“There is not some shadow workforce that sits in the Defence Forces or somewhere else that can automatically just replace furloughed staff because they have COVID.”
The operators aren’t stupid. They are desperate. They have staff persuading husbands and wives to come to aged care homes to cook, to clean, to make beds, to talk to isolated residents.
Yes Prime Minister, there is work the ADF can do – if you care enough.
Mr Albanese requested an aged care home on Tuesday to stage a press conference (pictured). His message:
“No one in aged care is taking wickets with the virus. People in aged care are really suffering. And when people saw Scott Morrison there on TV being flippant, saying, 'We’re living with COVID, we’re taking wickets with the virus', they’re entitled to be quite angry and frustrated.”
“And I'm very pleased to be here today with Sally, who's done such a remarkable job as our Labor candidate for Reid, but also Clare O'Neil, who’s doing good work making sure that we’re prepared for a better aged care system in the future, one that looks at post-COVID and how we get the structures right.”
No substance. No real respect. No real care.
Politicians can change the system. Are they man (and woman) enough to be bipartisan and work together to create a caring solution?
Aged care fails because it is broke. It is broke because no politician will say to Australia we have to co-contribute to aged care. The country can’t afford it, the next generation can’t afford it.
Older Australians have unprecedented wealth tied up in their homes and yet they are suffering ‘least cost’ aged care.
There is a Federal budget around 29 March and a Federal election around 7 May.
It’s time for politicians to understand that families care, elderly Australians care, younger people care.
It’s time for everyone to act.
