Submission to the Consultation on the new Aged Care Act Exposure Draft
FECCA’s recommendations on the draft of the new Aged Care Act, emphasising the need to make Australia’s aged care system more inclusive for culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) older people. FECCA supports the Act’s rights-based and person-centered approach but calls for concrete measures to ensure these principles are effectively implemented. Recommendations include embedding cultural competency as a core requirement, securing free language support throughout the aged care system, and ensuring culturally appropriate assessments and care. FECCA also highlights the necessity of sustainable funding for CALD-specific navigation services and the protection of ethno-specific aged care providers.
Emphasis is placed on importance of a well-trained and culturally competent workforce, especially given the reliance on migrant workers in aged care. FECCA calls for recognition of bilingual and bicultural workers’ skills and their integration into service delivery. Additionally, the Act must include robust measures to address systemic inequities, such as inadequate data collection on CALD populations and gaps in service availability. FECCA advocates for the Act to explicitly recognize diversity as a central element of quality care, ensuring equitable access and culturally tailored support for all older Australians.
