Just 38 of 36,000 Covid food boxes delivered to pensioners
Jun 6, 2020 7:16:43 GMT 7
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Post by bear on Jun 6, 2020 7:16:43 GMT 7
Government scheme delivers just 38 of predicted 36,000 Covid food boxes to older Australians
Exclusive: Labor pushes for the $9.3m of funding to be diverted to other aged-care programs
Just 38 of a predicted 36,000 food boxes have been delivered under a $9.3m government initiative designed to deliver emergency food supplies to older Australians isolating throughout Covid-19.
The emergency food supplies program was announced at the beginning of April after the national cabinet had recommended self-isolation to those over 70 and amid supply shortages at supermarkets. At the same time, a $50m injection to fund 3.4m meals on wheels portions to 41,000 older Australians over six weeks was also announced.
The Department of Health has now acknowledged, in an answer to a question asked about the scheme’s success during a parliamentary inquiry several weeks ago, that “demand is low” for the $9.3m program, which had delivered only 38 emergency boxes nationwide in the six weeks since it was announced.
“This result indicates that referrals to, and take up of referrals by providers is working very well, but that demand is low for this form of emergency assistance,” said the health department’s response to the question taken on notice, seen by the Guardian.
The $9.3m scheme, administered through My Aged Care, could be accessed either by internet or phone call for older Australians who lived independently.
While the contents of the food boxes is determined by a local grocery supplier, in general they include a range of breakfast, lunch and dinner meal options as well as household essentials like soap and toilet paper.
Julie Collins, the opposition’s aged care spokeswoman, said she was concerned the lack of demand for the scheme represented issues “vulnerable older Australians” were having in requesting the service.
She told the Guardian house-bound Australians aged over 70 had been “left to slip through the cracks” by a misallocation of Covid-19 response funds, and called for the unspent remainder of the $9.3m to be reinvested in the sector.
“The government must do better to deliver support instead of offering excuses ... any future policies must be better managed so support gets to the people who need it most,” she told the Guardian.
“We know other policies that support older Australians are massively oversubscribed, including the Commonwealth Home Support Programme, so any savings from this failure must go back into supporting these programs,” she said.
Ian Yates, the chief executive of the Council on the Ageing, told the Guardian his organisation was still taking calls from older Australians who were isolating at home and needing help with online grocery ordering.
“The option of emergency food parcels was less a big issue back when this was announced than things like giving advice to over 70s about going to the shops, and letting them know how to access delivery services.”
Yates said he was not surprised the uptake had not been as high as expected, because older Australians “still want to choose what food they have”.
He called for the unspent remainder of the $9.3m allocated to the program to be redirected to other aged-care services, including home care packages. “The very obvious thing would be to spend it on the 100,000 people waiting for home care packages. It’s only a drop in the bucket of the total amount, but it’s the highest priority for aged care, and people are stuck on the waiting list 12-18 months after being assessed as needing help.”
The aged care minister, Richard Colbeck, defended the emergency food supply box scheme, noting it was “one option that can be offered as part of an enhanced case management approach”.
While the program was supposed to last six weeks, Colbeck told the Guardian the $9.3m emergency supplies fund could be spent up until 30 June 2021.
When asked about reallocating funds remaining from the $9.3m, Colbeck said “the use of funding related to Covid-19 measures remains a matter for Australian Government consideration”.
www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/jun/05/government-scheme-delivers-just-38-of-predicted-36000-covid-food-boxes-to-older-australians
Exclusive: Labor pushes for the $9.3m of funding to be diverted to other aged-care programs
Just 38 of a predicted 36,000 food boxes have been delivered under a $9.3m government initiative designed to deliver emergency food supplies to older Australians isolating throughout Covid-19.
The emergency food supplies program was announced at the beginning of April after the national cabinet had recommended self-isolation to those over 70 and amid supply shortages at supermarkets. At the same time, a $50m injection to fund 3.4m meals on wheels portions to 41,000 older Australians over six weeks was also announced.
The Department of Health has now acknowledged, in an answer to a question asked about the scheme’s success during a parliamentary inquiry several weeks ago, that “demand is low” for the $9.3m program, which had delivered only 38 emergency boxes nationwide in the six weeks since it was announced.
“This result indicates that referrals to, and take up of referrals by providers is working very well, but that demand is low for this form of emergency assistance,” said the health department’s response to the question taken on notice, seen by the Guardian.
The $9.3m scheme, administered through My Aged Care, could be accessed either by internet or phone call for older Australians who lived independently.
While the contents of the food boxes is determined by a local grocery supplier, in general they include a range of breakfast, lunch and dinner meal options as well as household essentials like soap and toilet paper.
Julie Collins, the opposition’s aged care spokeswoman, said she was concerned the lack of demand for the scheme represented issues “vulnerable older Australians” were having in requesting the service.
She told the Guardian house-bound Australians aged over 70 had been “left to slip through the cracks” by a misallocation of Covid-19 response funds, and called for the unspent remainder of the $9.3m to be reinvested in the sector.
“The government must do better to deliver support instead of offering excuses ... any future policies must be better managed so support gets to the people who need it most,” she told the Guardian.
“We know other policies that support older Australians are massively oversubscribed, including the Commonwealth Home Support Programme, so any savings from this failure must go back into supporting these programs,” she said.
Ian Yates, the chief executive of the Council on the Ageing, told the Guardian his organisation was still taking calls from older Australians who were isolating at home and needing help with online grocery ordering.
“The option of emergency food parcels was less a big issue back when this was announced than things like giving advice to over 70s about going to the shops, and letting them know how to access delivery services.”
Yates said he was not surprised the uptake had not been as high as expected, because older Australians “still want to choose what food they have”.
He called for the unspent remainder of the $9.3m allocated to the program to be redirected to other aged-care services, including home care packages. “The very obvious thing would be to spend it on the 100,000 people waiting for home care packages. It’s only a drop in the bucket of the total amount, but it’s the highest priority for aged care, and people are stuck on the waiting list 12-18 months after being assessed as needing help.”
The aged care minister, Richard Colbeck, defended the emergency food supply box scheme, noting it was “one option that can be offered as part of an enhanced case management approach”.
While the program was supposed to last six weeks, Colbeck told the Guardian the $9.3m emergency supplies fund could be spent up until 30 June 2021.
When asked about reallocating funds remaining from the $9.3m, Colbeck said “the use of funding related to Covid-19 measures remains a matter for Australian Government consideration”.
www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/jun/05/government-scheme-delivers-just-38-of-predicted-36000-covid-food-boxes-to-older-australians