Nearly 50% of operators reporting a drop in RAD levels: LASA national survey

Confirmation that COVID-19 is hitting aged care providers’ hip pockets. On Tuesday, Leading Age Services Australia (LASA) held a webinar on the results of their national COVID-19 survey conducted at the end of April. Check out the table above. As you can see, 47% (26) of 79 residential care providers (covering over 12,000 residents) that took part in the survey reported that their Refundable Accommodation Deposits had fallen in March and April – in two cases, by more than 10%. 38% (21) providers reported no change in their RAD levels, while 15% (8) reported an increase. The findings are still significant however – particularly when you take into account the majority of participants were smaller-sized operators with only nine (11%) having more than 300 beds. Unsurprisingly, 62% of residential care providers and 26% of home care providers also said they were dissatisfied with the level of the Government’s response to COVID-19.

As one residential provider put it: “Information support is positive mainly but the financial drain is grave. We are not being listened to. The increase in ACFI for the three months has already been spent.”

The survey was conducted before the Government announced a further $205 million COVID-19 subsidy for residential care facilities – but the survey indicates that this will not go far enough to cover the increased costs from the pandemic and beyond. 74% of the residential care providers reported that increased PPE costs were impacting on their financial performance, followed by increased cleaning costs (63%) and coordinating their COVID-19 response (54%) with similar results across the home care providers in the survey. There was also a warning from LASA’s Senior Policy Advisor, Troy Speirs, that increased vigilance on infection controls in 2020-21 will continue to eat into budgets in both residential care and home care.

One home care provider warned: “The impact will come when restrictions are eased. That is when our clients will be most vulnerable.”

Interestingly, just 15% of residential care providers said they had deferred investments due to the pandemic. However, Troy said that he expected these numbers could increase once providers have completed their end-of-year acquittals. Further relief may also be in short supply – see this story.