One of the most confusing parts of moving into residential aged care is working out what’s included and what costs extra. Some services a home must provide as part of your care. Others are genuine optional extras, offered for an additional fee. Knowing which is which protects you from paying for things you never asked for or didn’t need. Here’s the plain-language guide.
The Three Categories
Broadly, what an aged care home provides falls into three buckets, and they’re funded very differently.
Care and services the home must provide are the essentials, and they’re covered by your care fees and government subsidy. This includes personal care, clinical and nursing care, meals, laundry, cleaning, bedding, basic furnishings, maintenance, and help with daily living. These aren’t optional, and a home cannot charge you extra for them.
Everyday living costs are the hotel-style basics, accommodation, meals, laundry, cleaning, utilities, covered by a basic daily fee and, for those who can afford it, contributions toward the cost.
Optional extra services are genuinely additional, things like premium wine with meals, pay TV, a larger room with a better outlook, hairdressing, outings, or newspapers delivered. These are offered at extra cost and, crucially, they’re meant to be your choice.
The Rule That Protects You
The key principle: optional services must be genuinely optional. A home should not require you to take an extras package as a condition of getting a place, and it must be clear about what any additional fee buys.
Under the new Aged Care Act, you have rights to clear information about services and pricing before you agree to anything. A home must be transparent about what’s included in your care and what costs extra, and you should be given the choice, not presented with a bundled fee you never chose.
If you’re told you must accept an extras package to secure a room, that’s worth questioning, and worth raising with an advocate.
Where People Get Caught Out
A few common traps. Agreeing to an optional extras package during the stressful, rushed period of moving in, without really reading what it includes or costs. Not realising an ongoing fee continues even if the services within it go unused. Assuming something is standard when it’s actually billed as an extra. And not asking whether a cheaper room option exists, because the higher-priced room with extras was presented first.
The stress of the transition is exactly when people sign things they later regret, which is why slowing down at this point genuinely pays.
The Questions to Ask Before You Sign
Ask the home directly: what exactly is included in the standard care and services, at no extra cost? What optional extras are you offering, what does each cost, and are they genuinely optional? Can I decline the extras package and still get this room? Can I cancel an optional service later if I don’t use it, and what notice is required? And is there a cheaper room or package available?
Get the answers in writing, and take the agreement away to read rather than signing on the spot. If you’re not sure, ask for time, a reputable home will give it.
Where to Get Help
You don’t have to work this out alone. The Older Persons Advocacy Network (OPAN) provides free, independent advice on 1800 700 600 and can help you understand an agreement before you sign. My Aged Care (1800 200 422) can explain what homes must provide, and the Department runs information sessions for older people and families on exactly this topic. If you believe you’re being charged for services that should be included, or pressured into extras, that’s a legitimate complaint for the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission. General information is on My Aged Care.
The Bottom Line
Aged care homes must provide care, nursing, meals, laundry, cleaning and daily living support as standard, covered by your fees and the government subsidy. Optional extras like premium wine, pay TV, hairdressing and outings are genuine choices you can accept or decline, and a home shouldn’t make them a condition of getting a place. Ask what’s included, get the extras and their costs in writing, don’t sign under pressure, and use OPAN’s free advice if you’re unsure. This is general information, not aged care, legal or financial advice.
Epik Wire covers aged care in plain language for older Australians and their families. Subscribe to our newsletter to stay informed.
