What the Aged Care Act 2024 Means for Home & NDIS Services from November 2025
The landscape of aged care in Australia is undergoing one of its biggest transformations in decades. When the Aged Care Act 2024 takes full effect on 1 November 2025, it will reshape how home-based care, supports, and NDIS-aligned services are delivered, regulated, and experienced. For organisations and participants offering or receiving NDIS development life skills Melbourne, community nursing services Melbourne, NDIS household tasks Melbourne, psychosocial recovery coach Melbourne, and NDIS support coordination Melbourne, the changes bring both opportunities and challenges.
In this article, I’ll walk you through what the new Act introduces, how it intersects with home and disability supports, and what providers and recipients should prepare for.
A New Rights-Based Framework for Aged Care
Some of the key changes include:
A Statement of Rights and Principles: Older people will have legally protected rights regarding decision-making, access to services, complaints, risk-taking, and cultural respect. health.gov.au
A single-entry assessment system: One streamlined entry point to determine eligible care, simplifying access.
These changes carry implications beyond just “aged care homes”—they reach into in-home care, community support, and allied services.
Home-Based Care Under the New “Support at Home” Program
One of the most relevant changes for home and community service providers is the replacement of existing in-home care programs (like Home Care Packages and Short-Term Restorative Care) with the new Support at Home program, effective from 1 November 2025.
Here’s what’s shifting:
More levels of funding support: Instead of just a few levels, the system expands to eight levels, ranging from modest support to high-complexity care.
Quarterly budgets: Rather than annual allocations, clients will receive budgets in quarterly cycles—divided into categories like clinical care, independence, and everyday living (e.g., assistance with daily tasks).
Carry-over provisions: Some unspent funds can carry forward (up to a limit), which allows flexibility.
Restorative care extended: The length and scope of restorative support (rehabilitation, allied health) will grow.
Care management allocation: A percentage of budgets is reserved for “care management” (i.e., coordination, review, oversight).
For providers of community nursing services Melbourne, NDIS household tasks Melbourne, or NDIS development life skills Melbourne, this means that home-based care services will increasingly be bundled, assessed, and integrated under aged care budgets for older clients. Providers will need to adapt to contracting with aged care budgets, not just separate NDIS funding.
Overlap and Tension: Aged Care & NDIS Services
Because some clients may be eligible both for NDIS supports and aged care supports (especially as they age), there will be more pressure on clarifying roles, funding boundaries, and service overlap.
Who pays for what?
The new Act reinforces that aged care funding covers aged care eligibility, while disability supports (via NDIS) remain under the NDIS for those eligible. But when a person transitions into aged care eligibility or ages out of NDIS, coordination will matter more than ever.
Providers who deliver psychosocial recovery coach Melbourne or support coordination Melbourne must understand how to interface with aged care assessments and budgets, especially for clients aging or transitioning between systems.
Integration, but not merging
The reforms don’t intend to fuse NDIS and aged care into one program, but encourage continuity, alignment, and cooperative pathways. Providers will need systems to “slot in” aged care tasks (e.g. daily personal care) with NDIS tasks without duplication or conflict.
Risks of “rationing” or cost-cutting
Some critics warn that new funding caps or classification limits may restrict care scope, especially for those with higher needs. Ensuring that participants receive “reasonable and necessary” support under NDIS when aged care doesn’t adequately cover it will demand careful planning.
What Providers Must Do to Prepare
Organizations offering household tasks, life skills development, community nursing, or support coordination must act now to align with the new regime. Here are key steps:
1. Understand new provider registration & compliance
Providers may also act as ndis support coordination melbourne, delivering parts of a registered provider’s services.
2. Train staff in rights-based, person-centred care
Because the Act emphasises dignity, decision-making, cultural safety, and risk-taking, staff must align their behaviour, documentation, and choices with those principles.
3. Redesign service models & funding interfaces
Services currently billed under NDIS may need to adapt to aged care program structures. Providers should plan how to offer household tasks, care coordination, or life skills support within or alongside aged care budgets.
4. Strengthen systems for care coordination & transitions
The new budgets expect some funds reserved for “care management.” Providers must have systems to coordinate, monitor, adjust services, and liaise with health, clinical, and allied professionals.
5. Clarify communication with participants and families
Change can be confusing. Providers should develop clear messaging about how eligible clients’ support may shift under the new Act and how they retain choice and voice in decisions.
What Clients Should Expect & Watch For
If you're receiving or considering aged care or NDIS-based services (or both), here’s what you should know:
From 1 November 2025, aged care programs like Home Care Packages will evolve into the Support at Home model.
You will have clear rights and protections under the new Statement of Rights. You can take risks, ask for support in decision-making, and expect complaints to be heard.
Your home-based services—such as nursing, daily tasks, and coordination—might be bundled differently under classification budgets.
If you currently receive NDIS development life skills, community nursing, household tasks, psychosocial recovery coaching, or support coordination, you may see changes in how services are organized or funded.
Your provider must maintain transparency, treat you as a partner in your care, and uphold your dignity, cultural identity, and autonomy.
Opportunities & Risks
Opportunities
Simplified access: Fewer entry points and assessments should ease the process of knowing which services you qualify for.
Stronger accountability: With stricter regulations, substandard providers will face more scrutiny—clients may benefit from better quality of care.
Flexibility: Quarterly budgets and carry-over options can allow clients to adapt funding to their needs.
Better alignment with health services: Because aged care will more strongly emphasize clinical interventions and allied health supports, clients may benefit from more integrated care.
Risks / Challenges
Ambiguity at boundaries: For people who need both NDIS and aged care supports, there may be uncertainty about which service covers which support.
Budget constraints: Classification-based caps might limit service scope for very high-need clients.
Transition burden: Providers may struggle to realign operations, train staff, and redesign systems in time.
Waitlists and rationing: Some commentators warn that delays in releasing services or restrictive eligibility may lead to unmet care needs. The Guardian
Conclusion: A New Era, If We Prepare Well
When the Aged Care Act 2024 begins in November 2025, it won’t only affect aged care homes—it will reshape how home care, community supports, and disability-aligned services interact. For organisations delivering NDIS development life skills Melbourne, community nursing services Melbourne, NDIS household tasks Melbourne, psychosocial recovery coach Melbourne, and NDIS support coordination Melbourne, the task ahead is clear