Budget 2021 and what that means for all patients

Budget 2021 and what that means for all patients

Whilst the budget delivered a direct benefit to podiatry patients as detailed above, there were a number of health announcements that will benefit patients.

Primary Care

MBS items for allied health case conferencing

  • $13.7 million over 4 years from 2021-22 to create new Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) items to reimburse allied health professionals for participating in multidisciplinary case conferences.
  • The new items will mirror those for other participating providers, including the scheduled fee and duration.
  • This measure will increase care coordination for patients with chronic disease and further embed our world class allied health practitioners in multidisciplinary care.

Extension of Telehealth measures

  • Telehealth services have been extended until the end of 2021.
  • Telehealth has already had a far-reaching impact in maintaining and increasing access to essential allied health services.
  • The Government is continuing to work with key stakeholders to develop a permanent Telehealth model and welcomes your input throughout this process.

Aged care

The Government has announced a raft of measures for the aged care sector in response to the Royal Commission into Aged Care Safety and Quality, and more will follow as policy development continues.

The Australian National Aged Care Classification replacing Aged Care Funding Instrument

  • The Australian National Aged Care Classification (AN-ACC) will replace the Aged Care Funding Instrument (ACFI) in Residential Aged Care from October 2022.
  • The AN-ACC will deliver a fairer and more sustainable funding model as well as provide a clearer understanding of particular care needs – including allied health – across classes of residents.
  • This will include an independent assessment of a resident’s care needs by a registered health professional, including a mix of registered nurses, physiotherapists and occupational therapists.

New support at home program

  • A new support at home program will be developed in consultation with senior Australians and community stakeholders, commencing in July 2023.
  • The program will replace the Commonwealth Home Support Programme, Home Care Packages, Short-Term Restorative Care, and residential respite programs.
  • The new support at home program will better target services to senior Australians’ assessed care needs by creating a continuum of support. This will range from one-off restorative interventions and low-level support around the house, through to help with complex care needs, including people living with dementia.
  • Allied health services will continue to be funded under the new program.

Project to understand hospitalisation rates of aged care residents

  • $0.5 million in 2021-22 for a short-term data analysis and stakeholder engagement project to explore the drivers of higher hospitalisation rates for those living in residential aged care.
  • The project will examine models that incentivise the use of multidisciplinary teams – including allied health professionals – to reduce avoidable emergency presentations and hospital admissions.

Allied health data gap analysis project

  • $0.7 million in 2021-22 for an allied health data gap analysis to improve the visibility, transparency and impact of allied health services to better support an aged care workforce of the future.

Workforce

The Australian Government is investing $123.0 million over five years from 2020-21 to ensure that the health workforce is available to improve the health and wellbeing of all Australians. These measures support the delivery of health services especially in regional, rural and remote areas of Australia and will benefit communities and their residents. This investment builds on and supports implementation of the Government’s ten year Stronger Rural Health Strategy announced in the 2018-19 Budget. The reform package will help deliver more doctors, nurses and allied health workers outside of capital cities and into regional, rural and remote areas, and will help ensure equity of healthcare access for all Australians regardless of where they live.

Expansion of Allied Health Rural Generalist Pathway

  • $9.6 million over three years from 2021-22 to expand the Allied Health Rural Generalist Pathway (AHRGP) to provide:
    • up to 90 workplace training packages to attract and retain allied health professionals, predominantly in Modified Monash (MM) 3-7 locations
    • 30 packages allocated to Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations
    • 30 Allied Health Assistant packages to provide tailored practice and workforce support for allied health practitioners to establish and/or maintain viable practices in under-serviced communities.

Rural primary care model trials

  • $2.2 million over five years from 2021-22 to fund trials of innovative, multidisciplinary primary care models to alleviate ongoing workforce shortages and improve outcomes in rural communities in MM3-7.
  • This measure builds on trials already underway in Western and Southern NSW and provides an opportunity for similar trials in other locations around Australia.

Post-graduate scholarships for allied health

  • $5.4 million over three years to fund 100 new post-graduate scholarships each year for allied health professionals with a focus on dementia qualifications.
    • five of these scholarships each year will be targeted for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Mental health

The Australian Government is investing $58.8 million in initiatives to grow and upskill the mental health workforce, including:

$11 million to boost the psychiatrist workforce by increasing the number of training places available, including in regional and remote areas

  • $27.8 million to increase the number of nurses, psychologists and allied health practitioners working in mental health settings through 280 scholarships and 350 clinical placements
  • $3.1 million to sponsor up to 390 peer workers to undertake vocational training
  • $0.3 million to identify opportunities to boost the skills of those who work with children and families
  • $1 million to reduce the stigma associated with mental health among health practitioners, and promote mental health as a preferred career option

Curriculum development in intellectual disability health

  • $4.6 million over four years for curriculum development in intellectual disability health.
  • This measure will support further consultation on the inclusion of mandatory competencies in health care for people with intellectual disability in tertiary education health curricula, and the development of specific and specialised curricula content.

More information will be published on the Department of Health website in due course