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| Australian Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission | |
|---|---|
| Agency name | Australian Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission |
| Formed | 1 January 2019 |
| Preceding1 | Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission (interim) |
| Jurisdiction | Australia |
| Headquarters | Canberra |
| Chief1 name | Brett Mason |
| Chief1 position | Commissioner |
| Parent agency | Australian Government |
Australian Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission is the national statutory body responsible for regulation, oversight and improvement of aged care services in Australia. It inspects residential aged care homes, monitors home care providers and manages the Aged Care Quality Standards regime introduced after the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety. The Commission interacts with federal institutions, state authorities and professional bodies to protect older Australians receiving care.
The Commission was established on 1 January 2019 following reforms prompted by the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety and successor policy work in the Turnbull ministry and Morrison government. Its creation consolidated functions previously dispersed across the Department of Health and the Aged Care Standards and Accreditation Agency and responded to public inquiries including the Commonwealth Ombudsman investigations and reports by the Productivity Commission. Early leadership interacted with inquiries such as the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse insofar as regulatory practice and safeguarding frameworks were compared. The Commission’s remit expanded alongside legislation like the Aged Care Act 1997 amendments and reviews by the Senate Select Committee on Aging and reviews influenced by judgements in tribunals like the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.
The Commission’s principal duties include assessment of compliance with the Aged Care Quality Standards, accreditation of providers, consumer advocacy support and education for providers and recipients such as liaison with Council on the Ageing and professional colleges including the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners and the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation. It administers the Serious Incident Response Scheme (SIRS) informed by advice from bodies like the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care and consults with legal institutions such as the High Court of Australia on rights-based interpretations. The Commission issues guidance that intersects with codes from agencies including the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency and standards from the Standards Australia process.
Statutory governance arrangements place the Commission under a Commissioner appointed by the Governor-General of Australia and accountable to ministers in the Commonwealth of Australia. Its internal directorates reflect functions shared with entities such as the National Disability Insurance Agency for interface arrangements, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare for data, and the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority where financial oversight of aged care providers is relevant. Oversight mechanisms include parliamentary estimates before the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit and reporting requirements consistent with the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 and interactions with the Attorney-General's Department on legal matters.
The Commission enforces the Aged Care Quality Standards, developed after consultation with stakeholder groups such as Older Persons Advocacy Network and peak bodies including the Aged & Community Services Australia and Leading Age Services Australia. It conducts routine accreditation against criteria aligned with international instruments like the World Health Organization guidance and draws on comparative models from regulators such as the Care Quality Commission in the United Kingdom and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services in the United States Department of Health and Human Services. Compliance pathways include corrective action plans, periodic audits and public reporting aligned with legislative frameworks like amendments to the Aged Care Act 1997.
Enforcement tools include notices, sanctions and referral to law enforcement agencies such as the Australian Federal Police when criminal conduct is suspected, and collaboration with prosecuting authorities including the Director of Public Prosecutions for commonwealth matters. Investigations involve coordination with coronial processes at state levels such as the Coroner's Court of Victoria and administrative reviews via the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. The Commission’s role in serious incident management was shaped by cases examined by the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety and subsequent policy direction from the Prime Minister of Australia and relevant ministers.
The Commission maintains formal engagement with peak bodies such as Carers Australia, the Australian Medical Association, unions including the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation, and consumer advocates like COTA Australia. Partnerships extend to research organisations such as the University of Sydney, Monash University, University of Melbourne and think tanks like the Grattan Institute for evidence-based policy. It collaborates with international counterparts including the New Zealand Ministry of Health and multilateral actors like the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development on aged care benchmarking.
The Commission publishes performance reports and annual reports, subject to scrutiny in parliamentary inquiries such as those by the Senate Community Affairs References Committee and critiques from advocacy groups including Dementia Australia and investigative journalism outlets like ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) and The Sydney Morning Herald. Independent analyses by the Productivity Commission, academic studies from institutions such as the Australian National University and reviews by the Australian National Audit Office have assessed effectiveness, transparency and timeliness of inspections. Criticisms often focus on resourcing, responsiveness to systemic failures identified in the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety and interface with state systems such as those in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and Western Australia.
Category:Health agencies of Australia