The Minister for Mental Health and Ageing introduced into the Parliament on 26 May 2011 proposed new regulations relating to the use of accommodation bonds held by aged care providers by way of the Aged Care Amendment Bill 2011. Accommodation bonds are an unsecured prepayment for aged care accommodation services and typically involve a substantial amount of money. Given this, a certain amount of consumer protection regulation already applies to the charging and use of accommodation bonds. The proposed regulatory changes:
- Limit the permitted uses for accommodation bonds.
- Introduce new criminal offences where misuse of accommodation bonds has been identified.
- Introduce new information gathering powers to better monitor the financial situation of providers.
- Remove restrictions on the use of income derived from accommodation bonds, retention amounts and accommodation charges.
The Department of Health and Ageing prepared a Regulation Impact Statement which was assessed as adequate by the Office of Best Practice Regulation.
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