Price caps deferred, new safeguards introduced for older Australians

The federal government has delayed the introduction of price caps for the Support at Home program, citing market volatility, while announcing new measures to strengthen consumer protections and prevent older Australians from being charged unreasonable fees.

The price caps, due to begin on 1 July 2026, would have set fixed maximum prices for services such as nursing, personal care, domestic assistance and meal support. The government says global cost pressures and unstable pricing across the sector make it too risky to set caps now.

Health and Ageing Minister Mark Butler told ABC Radio National the government did not want to repeat mistakes seen in other systems.

“We do not want to set in place a price cap that leads to unintended consequences, particularly that see prices go up,” he said.

“We are worried about the sort of volatility you see around prices right now.”

Minister Butler said the government would wait for more stable data and continue strengthening consumer protections in the meantime.

Providers have backed the decision, arguing premature caps could have reduced service availability and forced rushed changes to care agreements.

Ageing Australia chief Tom Symondson said caps set without a new independent study would have been unable to account for the true cost of delivering quality services.

“[The government’s decision] reduces the immediate risk of widespread, last-minute changes to service agreements, reductions in services and reinforces the importance of evidence-based pricing,” he said.

“A deferral gives us time to better understand the true cost of delivering services to older people, whatever their needs and wherever they live. This is crucial if we are to avoid the damage caps have done in other sectors where they can drastically reduce access to services, particularly for people with complex needs and those in regional areas.”

Consumer advocates, however, said the delay will leave older Australians vulnerable to rising costs.

“Stronger oversight and transparency measures are positive, but delaying pricing caps means older people will continue to face uncertainty about what they will pay,” the Older Persons Advocacy Network (OPAN) policy, education and systemic advocacy director Samantha Edmonds said.

“Older people are already enduring a cost-of-living crisis and having access to reasonable and affordable care is essential for their wellbeing.”

OPAN also called for local price transparency, not just national averages, and warned that package values must be indexed properly to keep pace with inflation.

New consumer protections

Alongside the deferral, the Labor government announced a suite of new measures aimed at strengthening consumer protections under Support at Home.

“Older Australians and their families told us they need stronger protections against rogue market prices,” Aged Care Minister Sam Rae said.

“We have listened, and we are acting.”

The Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission (ACQSC)will gain new powers to order refunds where providers have overcharged, to take regulatory action against providers who fail to issue monthly statements, and to publicly report on investigations and enforcement activity.

A quarterly National Summary of Support at Home Prices will also be published, showing median prices and ranges across the sector to help older people compare providers.

Providers will be encouraged to limit price increases to twice a year to give consumers more certainty.

The government will also fund OPAN to expand financial advocacy and COTA Australia to deliver education on consumer rights, service agreements and how to compare prices.

A new working group, including OPAN, COTA, Ageing Australia and ACQSC, will focus on defining reasonable pricing, consulting on the multi provider model, and improving support for people who self manage their packages.