Aged Care in Australia: The Reality Behind the Home Care Package Waiting List

March 10, 2026

by admin
Reading Time: 4 minutes

Older Australians deserve to live with dignity, independence, and comfort at home. But right now, many are waiting far too long for the support they need. The Home Care system in Australia was designed to give older people tailored assistance at home, whether that means help with showering, cleaning, cooking, or managing medications. Today, growing demand has created a bottleneck that is being felt by families across the country.

A Deepening Crisis: The Home Care Waiting List

Australia’s Home Care waiting list has grown to unprecedented levels. Recent official data shows that around 121,596 older Australians are currently waiting to be assessed for in-home support, meaning they have not yet even entered the care system. At the same time, a further about 87,000 people have been approved for a Home Care Package but have not yet received one. Both groups together amount to roughly 210,000 people waiting for a package to start.

An assessment is the first step to access government-funded home care services, so if someone is still waiting for that assessment, they have no funding allocated yet. For those who are approved but waiting for a package to become available, the care they need is on hold until a package becomes avaialble.

Across Australia, average wait times can stretch from nine months to more than a year, especially for higher-level support, because demand for high-level Home Care Packages continues to outstrip supply.

For older Australians and their families, this is more than a statistic. It can mean weeks or months without help to stay safe at home, with rising risks of falls, hospital visits, or premature entry into residential care.

Government Response: More Packages, Still Not Enough

In response to mounting pressure, the Federal Government has moved to release more support, but even this has not closed the gap.

In November 2025, the government fast-tracked 20,000 extra Home Care Packages in reaction to demands from providers, advocacy groups, and cross-bench politicians pushing for more support.

These new packages were part of a broader reform strategy designed to improve access to care. By June 2026, the government expects to release an additional 63,000 Support at Home places.

But this still leaves a huge shortfall. Even after the release of 83,000 new places between November 2025 and July 2026, the system still faces a shortfall of close to 160,000 places. And that does not account for people who will enter the system during this time or the people requiring reassessment.

For many older Australians and their families, this gap means continuing uncertainty about when essential help will arrive.

What Delays Mean for Older Australians

Delays in receiving home care support have consequences that go far beyond paperwork:

Health and safety risks increase when people wait too long for help with essential daily living tasks or clinical support.
Hospital stays become more likely because older people don’t have the right care in the community.
Families and unpaid carers take on enormous stress and burden as they fill gaps left by the system.
Longer waits for care packages also push some people into residential aged care earlier than they had planned.

Shifts in Government Spending and What It Means for Care

The home care spending outlook has changed. The Federal Government’s 2025-26 Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook (MYEFO) showed that the sector is no longer one of the fastest-growing spending areas in the federal budget. Aged care funding growth has slowed, reflecting broader fiscal restraint, even as demand continues to rise.

MYEFO confirms investment of almost $1 billion in in-home support over two years, including the 20,000 Home Care Packages already released and the 63,000 Support at Home places planned by June 2026. This funding supports older Australians to remain living at home, the stated goal of age-friendly policy.

But from 2027-28 onwards, estimates show home care funding tightening further. The lack of growth in spending combined with Australia’s ageing population growth raises serious questions. Will future budgets be able to keep pace with demand?

So while the government appears to be prioritising short-term expansions of care places, which already fail to meet exisiting need, while looking to control longer-term spending, as more people enter the system, for older people waiting at home, that means more uncertainty about future access to help.

Understanding the Policy Shift

Why is the government projecting lower spending? A large part of this is the transition to the new Support at Home program. While the program aims to be more efficient, the reality is that the demand for care is accelerating. Each year, tens of thousands of Australians require aged-supports, adding sustained pressure to an already stretched system, the aged care system is facing a demographic wave that the current budget simply isn’t equipped to handle.

The narrative is shifting toward greater “consumer contributions”, meaning that in the future, those who have the financial means may be expected to contribute more to their own care costs to ensure the system remains viable for those who cannot.

A Call to Think Differently About Care in Australia

The current situation with the Home Care Package system in Australia shows a clear mismatch between demand for care and the supply of available support. Tens of thousands of older people are in waiting rooms of government systems, stretching their independence and peace of mind.

As a community, we are invited to think about what this means going forward. Should the funding model adapt to become demand-driven rather than capped for a set number of places each year? How do we ensure older Australians do not feel pushed into care that is too late or too limited?

For families considering aged care, now is a moment to stay informed, ask questions, and share experiences. Behind every number on the waiting list is a person who simply wants to live safely, independently, and with dignity in their own home. The challenge now is whether the system can respond quickly enough to make that possible.

You Do Not Have to Navigate This Alone

The aged care system is not simple. Assessments, waiting lists, funding levels, reassessments, and Support at Home transitions, it’s all so complex.

My Care Journey can help you:

Understand My Aged Care and eligibility
Compare home care providers
Explore residential aged care options
Navigate forms and applications
Understand aged care fees and costs
Change providers if your current care isn’t the right fit

We are independent, experienced, and we support older Australians and their families to navigate the aged care system every day.

If You Are Currently Waiting

If you or your loved one is

On the Home Care Package waiting list
Trying to choose a Support at Home provider
Wanting to change providers
Needing to move into residential care
Wanting to better understand aged care fees
Or simply unsure about next steps

Book a Consultation Today

Understand your options.
Avoid unnecessary delays.
Make informed decisions with confidence.

👉 Visit www.mycarejourney.com.au
👉 Or contact us to arrange a confidential discussion.