Knowing how to choose a home care provider starts with one document: the letter that tells you what you have been approved for. Providers deliver services in different ways and charge different amounts, so the right one for a neighbour may not be right for you. This guide shows how to build a shortlist, what to compare, the questions to ask and what to check in the service agreement before you sign.
The steps in order:
- Read your approval letter and support plan.
- Build a shortlist of providers who offer every service you were approved for.
- Compare services, specialised care, prices and published quality information.
- Meet or call each provider and ask the same questions.
- Read the service agreement carefully before you enter into it.
Start with your approval letter, not a brochure
Before you look at providers, you need to have been assessed and approved for aged care services. If you were approved for Support at Home, you will have received a Notice of Decision letter and a support plan setting out the services you were approved for.
Keep both documents beside you while you search. Under Support at Home, you receive all of your services from a single provider, so a provider needs to offer everything on your list, not just the main service. The guide to how the Support at Home program works explains the program, and the guide to the Commonwealth Home Support Programme covers entry-level help at home.
Build a shortlist
My Aged Care runs the official Find a provider tool. You can search by location and service, apply filters, add up to 16 providers to a shortlist and compare up to 3 side by side. Some filters may already be set from information you have given My Aged Care, and you can change them.
Directories add another view. Provider24 lists businesses by category, such as In-Home Support Services, Domestic Care and Personal Care, and you contact each one directly. Listing on Provider24 says nothing about a business’s approval to deliver government-funded aged care, so check each one on My Aged Care.
Three to five providers is a workable shortlist. Enough to compare properly, few enough that the calls do not take over your week.
What to compare
Services that match what you were approved for
Check each provider’s profile, or ask them directly, whether they deliver every service in your support plan. Note whether they deliver the service themselves or arrange it through another company, because that can affect cost and who turns up at your door.
Specialised care
All providers must deliver inclusive care. Some also offer specialised care, tailoring their services and staff to particular needs and backgrounds, such as language, faith, culture, health conditions or lived experience. If that matters to you, use the specialised care filters on Find a provider and ask about it on the first call.
Prices and contributions
Support at Home providers must publish pricing information for their services. Costs vary, so compare what each provider charges against your budget, and ask for prices in writing. Ask how and when prices can change, and how you will be told.
If you are expected to contribute towards some services, ask how the provider collects contributions and how often. This guide does not quote figures; the current information is on My Aged Care.
Care management and your care partner
Your provider develops a care plan with you that sets out your goals, how your services will be delivered and when. Ask who your day-to-day contact will be, how often they will check in and how you can ask for changes to your services. You can ask to change the mix of services at any time.
Quality information published about the provider
Every provider listed on My Aged Care is regulated by the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission and must meet the Aged Care Quality Standards. Each provider’s profile on Find a provider includes a compliance section showing its current and past performance, and a finance section summarising how it earns and spends money. Read both before you commit.
Questions to ask before you sign
Talking to a provider tells you more than any profile, and you do not have to commit to anyone at this stage. Bring a family member, friend or carer if that helps. Ask every provider the same questions so you can compare the answers:
- Can you deliver every service in my support plan, and do you deliver them yourselves?
- Who will my workers be, and will I usually see the same people?
- Who is my main contact, and who covers when they are away?
- What are your prices for each service, and how will I be told if they change?
- How do cancellations and changes to visit times work?
- How will my family or carer be included in decisions about my care?
- How do I raise a concern, and what happens next?
A provider who answers clearly and puts things in writing has told you something useful. So has one who avoids the questions.
Your service agreement
Once you choose a provider, you give them the referral code from your Notice of Decision letter so they can see your assessment and support plan. They then give you a service agreement. It is a legally binding document that sets out the services you will receive, who will provide them and what they cost. You must enter into it before or on the day your services start.
You do not have to sign it straight away. Ask the provider to explain anything that is unclear, and ask family, friends, a carer or a legal professional to read it with you. A free aged care advocate can also help; My Aged Care explains how to reach one on its page about agreeing to Support at Home services. Your provider must also give you a copy of the Statement of Rights and the Code of Conduct for Aged Care.
Changing providers later
Choosing a provider is not a permanent decision. You can make changes to your services, including ending your service agreement if you choose. Read the agreement’s terms on notice and ending services before you sign, so you know what changing would involve.
If something is not working, raise it with the provider first, since some problems are fixed in one conversation. If it continues, start your search again from your approval letter, and line up the new provider before the old one stops.
Starting your home care shortlist on Provider24
When you are ready to look, you can browse in-home support businesses on Provider24 or combine a category and a location on the Explore page. Contact each business directly, and check its details on My Aged Care before you sign. Provider24 does not endorse or rank listed businesses.
This article is general information, not advice. For help with your own situation, contact My Aged Care.
Frequently asked questions
How do I choose a My Aged Care provider?
Start with your Notice of Decision letter and support plan. Use Find a provider to shortlist providers who offer every service you were approved for, compare up to 3 side by side, then call or meet them and ask the same questions. Read the service agreement before you enter into it.
Who is the best aged care provider in Australia?
There is no single best provider. The right one depends on the services you were approved for, your needs and preferences, where you live and how the provider performs on the quality and compliance information published on My Aged Care.
Can I change my home care provider?
Yes. You can make changes to your services, including ending your service agreement. Check the agreement’s terms on notice first, and arrange your new provider before the old one stops so there is no gap in care.
Do I have to sign the service agreement straight away?
No. Take the time to understand it and ask questions. Family, friends, a carer, a legal professional or a free aged care advocate can help you read it before you agree.