Lack of state funding commitment will affect our most vulnerable

cohealth is calling on all major parties in the Victorian election to not allow quality services to slip for community health clients under 65 years old who don’t qualify for for support under the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).

In July 2015 funding and service arrangements for Home and Community Care (HACC) clients over 65 years will be transferred to the Commonwealth. The Victorian government will retain funding responsibility for services for HACC clients under 65 (under 50 for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people), however it has been unclear how this money will be allocated and what will happen to people outside of the NDIS. Until this is clarified, cohealth remains concerned that with this change will come a service gap into which a large proportion of cohealth’s under 65s will fall.

To ensure a continued level and quality of flexible services for under 65s, cohealth would like to see HACC services incorporated into the community health funding agreements with the Victorian Government.

cohealth Chief Executive, Lyn Morgain wants the incoming Victorian government to understand the potential effects of the funding uncertainty for the most marginalised and disadvantaged in our community. ‘cohealth sees this as a potentially disastrous oversight that will affect many in the communities we serve. Of the total number of HACC clients supported each year by cohealth, almost half of those fall into the under 65s category. That is a large section of a very vulnerable community currently without future certainty of flexible and responsive services’, Ms Morgain said.

cohealth is a leading provider of community health services at more than 30 sites across Melbourne’s western, northern and inner suburbs. cohealth was formed in May this year through the merger of Doutta Galla Community Health, North Yarra Community Health and Western Region Health Centre.